Boycotting Olympics

It is now only 28 days until the start of the Beijing Olympic Games.

Whilst I am not a great sports enthusiast and we have not had a TV for many years, it is hard not to get caught up in this feast of sport. And of course, there is nothing wrong with that.


With only a month to go, the campaign to boycott the games gathers pace. Reporters Sans Frontieres says

Around 30 journalists and 50 Internet users are currently detained in China. Some of them since the 1980s. The government blocks access to thousands for news websites. It jams the Chinese, Tibetan and Uyghur-language programmes of 10 international radio stations. After focusing on websites and chat forums, the authorities are now concentrating on blogs and video-sharing sites. China’s blog services incorporate all the filters that block keywords considered “subversive” by the censors. The law severely punishes “divulging state secrets,” “subversion” and “defamation” - charges that are regularly used to silence the most outspoken critics. Although the rules for foreign journalists have been relaxed, it is still impossible for the international media to employ Chinese journalists or to move about freely in Tibet and Xinjiang.

The Chinese authorities promised the IOC and international community concrete improvements in human rights in order to win the 2008 Olympics for Beijing. But they changed their tone after getting what they wanted. For example, then deputy Prime Minister Li Lanqing said, four days after the IOC vote in 2001, that “China’s Olympic victory” should encourage the country to maintain its “healthy life” by combatting such problems as the Falungong spiritual movement, which had “stirred up violent crime.” Several thousands of Falungong followers have been jailed since the movement was banned and at least 100 have died in detention.

I think China is a despotic and disgusting regime which should be boycotted. I pledge to switch off (and/or not read) any media outlet about the Olympic Games for the duration. With holidays and a full timetable of test matches, that shouldn't be too difficult.

perspectives on the academic boycott

In a very intelligent post, Rabbi David Forman from the Rabbis for Human Rights argues that use of an academic boycott and terms such as 'apartheid' in the context of Israel/Palestine are not helpful.

However, with rare humility he also says

And yet, we know in our hearts of hearts that while such boycotts are not justified on the universal plain of comparisons, there are more than a few elements of truth in what these hypocrites claim.... Israel’s present situation is still not politically analogous to South Africa’s history of discrimination; and so, we confidently argue that “apartheid” is not an appropriate term to apply to what we are doing in the West Bank. But what term would one choose to define a privileged protectionism for a few thousand Jews in the West Bank over a separate and unequal existence for over two million Palestinians?

The fact that compared to other countries we are a paragon of moral virtue does not obviate another fact: We have shamed ourselves as a Jewish state..

And as Howard Jacobson in yesterday's Independent points out, opposing an academic boycott is not necessarily to imply support of the occupation.

fridges, choirs and GIRLcotting

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This week, we will be receiving a fridge and hopefully also a freezer. We have been without said electrical appliances since last October. For those wondering, it is possible to live without them, but it is quite difficult and annoying.

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We recently went to a concert put on by the The African Children's Choir. Working on the basis that a child lifted out of poverty makes a big difference to them and their community, this Christian organisation auditions children from several African countries, then takes them around the world for a year. The children then return to school. Ex-choir members are now in a range of professional jobs. Which is pretty remarkable considering that they came from the slums.

The choir we saw (they have several on the go at once) was a bunch of very small 10-11 year olds, but with bags and bags of energy. It was quite a sight to see a performance of such joy and enthusiasm.

It is all pretty silly - taking kids away from their parents for a year, in order to earn their crust to pay for their education. Literally singing for their supper.

But then, it actually makes a difference to their future lives, and that should not be overlooked.

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As part of a series of local events under the banner of Positive Images, last night I attended an event at the Coventry Peace House. We met a couple of Palestinian peace activists - one from Gaza and one from East Jerusalem studying at the Coventry University Centre for Peace and Reconciliation Studies. The guy from Gaza had been involved in various Palestinian-Israeli activities, most notably the Geneva Accord. This is a peace negotiation undertaken by non-governmental academics, activists, artists and ex-politicians from both communities. It is said that the agreement was accepted by the Palestinian side, but rejected by the Israeli government so never got further than the paper it was written on.

The guy from East Jerusalem was also interesting. I asked him about boycotts and the economic situation, and he said what was needed in contrast to a boycott was a GIRLcott of Palestinian products. Which is an interesting turn of phrase...