MEP protests to China on broken Olympic human rights promises

1.11.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 6th Aug 2008

Local Euro-MP Liz Lynne has written to the Chinese ambassador to express her concern about reported continuing human rights abuses in the country, just a couple of days before the start of the Olympic Games.

A recent Amnesty report was sharply critical of the Chinese government for failing to fulfil promises on human rights made at the time it applied to host the Olympics.

Liz Lynne, who is a member of the European Parliament's Human Rights Subcommittee, criticised the Government's decision to send Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell to the opening ceremony and echoed recent calls for Gordon Brown not to attend the closing ceremony. Her comments come on the same day that two Britons were arrested in Beijing for unfurling 'Free Tibet' banners outside the Olympic stadium.

She said:

"The Beijing Olympics will be a sporting spectacle we can all look forward to, but we must remember this will be set against a backdrop of continuing human rights violations by the Chinese state.

"Persecution of peaceful activists, detention without trial, the death penalty and censorship all squarely go against the values of the Olympic movement and do damage to its image.

"Chinese government censorship of the internet has recently been reduced, with the unblocking of many websites, and this is to be welcomed, but this is far too little progress considering they have had years to make real improvements to their own citizens' rights."

On the question of boycotting the ceremonies of the Olympic Games, Liz added:

"It is good that the Games will throw the international spotlight on a regime that continues to repress its own people. But it is vital that the UK is not seen to endorse this regime and for this reason no minister should attend the opening ceremony and Gordon Brown must not go to the closing ceremony. If human rights progress is to be made, we must keep up the pressure on the Chinese state, not appease it."

ENDS

Notes:

Liz Lynne has often spoken out against human rights violations in China, speaking in Parliament, writing to the Chinese authorities and attending a demonstration in Brussels against repression in Tibet.