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France's Sarkozy may boycott Bejing Olympics

  2. jhaber
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For the first time, a world leader is talking about boycotting the Olympics because of China's actions in Tibet. Will any other leaders follow?

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jhaber

19 responses // France's Sarkozy may boycott Bejing Olympics

  • interesting... following the link to the full story:
    http://blog.iconflict.com/frances-sarkozy-may-boycott-b...
    you find some people complain about everything that doesn't make "economic" sense, ridiculing Sarkozy because he's not ordering a few more toy airplanes from Tibet.

    i guess that's why i tend to believe that money is the root of the all evil...even if you don't have it. people in their own stinkin' thinkin' let economics guide their morality....for the love of money.

    If China wants to take a center stage in the world, there should be "proper" pressures that come with that.

    China needs to get with it...no harm in making that statement by me. economics or not. I applaud Sarkozy's stepping up to that ill-regarded plate. Yeah, phuk kissing somebody's a$$ cuz they mean cold green cash.
    echoz
  • It's sad that people miss the point about what the Olympics stand for. It's the greatest opportunity for all humanitarians to rally for peaceful coexistence and go beyond politics, strive for excellence, and give people hope and triumph. Boycotting the Olympics is ill witted.

    If people have something against China, they should boycott Chinese trade, not the Olympics. If anything, we should take advantage of it happening in Beijing to make the most poignant statement in front of 1000 nations by earning the gold medals there.
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    pressrecord
  • "Boycotting the Olympics is ill witted."

    Asking or ordering the athletes to boycott the olympics is ill witted. Athletes should be left to their own conscience.

    Political leaders and idle spectators make a strong statement by staying home. I would love to see the events take place in front of half empty stands. But I have no doubt that the chinese would drag people in off the streets to fill the arenas if necessary to project the image they seek.
    seeker561
  • I posted almost the same story earlier but it's mostly wrong. They have since pulled back. See link. BTW I saw her on France 24 recently. France really sucks if they do nothing.

    http://current.com/items/88889653_sarkozy_s_aide_says_l...
    samply
  • =D "misquoted" huh? yeah, uh-huh...probably more a case of "misspoke to soon." hehe I actually even wondered if it was "just" the opening ceremony he was boycotting, save the rest of the Olympics. ;D

    If the spirit of the Olympics is really to be "the greatest opportunity for all humanitarians to rally for peaceful coexistence and go beyond politics, strive for excellence, and give people hope and triumph" you'd think "freeing Tibet" after all wouldn't even cause the Chinese to break a sweat, huh? ;) ...seems like there might be a little more going on there than meets the eye. I know cities here in the states vied for "hosting" rights because it meant a sure economic boon to the state and the hosting community...and whatever glorified stature it gave them with competing "sister" cities. tsk but what do I know. I'm quite assuredly no Olympian. *shrug*

    Certainly, from the athletes' perspective, humanitarian issues aside, I think it would really suck to train for so many years and not get your chance to show what you got...even if it only meant the largely symbolic psuedo-dominance of your country in athletic competitions when/if you actually win....and of course, all those endorsements and instant celebrity status don't hurt AT ALL ;D lol
    echoz
  • Hmmm, should I really stand by, idle on two counts of fraud? Firstly, pretending that sport isn't already political and secondly that China will change in any way without politicizing events like the Olympics. I think not.
    fernandez_is_go
  • In my mind's camera eye, I see vast amounts of Chinese citizens chained to their bleacher seats and nervously applauding the proceedings while GWB half-grins from his private viewing box.
    I hope that Sarkozy and others will take this decision to not show seriously.
    (he sure looks menacing in that photo. no?)
    huntre
  • I strongly believe that the Olympics should be boycotted. The actions of China's government in the Tibet cannot be avoided in order to just run the Olympics giving some kind of support to China actions.

    This is not racism is anti-different culture, anyone that support their actions support repression to different and aislated cultures.
    ghostbar
  • yeah...Sarkozy looks a bit like "you wanna PLAY hehe." =D but china's a tough nut to crack, even if someone's in their face about it. these people don't lay down, they have to be put down...
    echoz
  • should the Olympics be held in, say, USA or UK...or Israel...or Russia...would you all still boycott it under the pretense that governments with human rights violations can be changed by boycotting a non-governmental international sports organization?

    i applaud you guys for being conscious with political will and can respect your views on China, whether it's based on intelligent opinion or instinctual dislike. i just don't think boycotting the Olympics will do anything for Tibet. if i'm wrong, then i'd be the first to rescind. but, i'd rather boycott China and not the Olympics.

    i really do believe more can be done for oppressed people the world over if we can show how to be united and not simply decent. (especially if we live in a country with worse human rights violations than China).
    pressrecord
  • If you guys dont like china then dont buy chinese stuff. The olympics is designed to supercede politics. Pele played in Berlin in '44. The fact that he was there, and won, says a whole lot more than would h simply ignored the Nazi's and not shown up.

    It is competion between nations, without war. The french are just considering an early surrender.
    CalPerr
  • Right on Pressrecord~
    Let's look at the whole picture here.There's a time and place for somethings, are we sure this is the right outlet?

    Outright boycott of the Olympics might not be the best tactic, speaking out against the Chinese government in a non-abrasive manner and helping them to see thier own lack of conciousness--as a Tibetan monk might say-- would be more effective.

    It's common knowledge to know that hostility + hostility will only create more hostility and like pressrecord said, if we as American's really want to take a stand we should boycott Chinese goods.

    ****Buy fair trade!****
    mariposablanca
  • This isn't the first time. "French President Nicolas Sarkozy has said he may skip the opening ceremony. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she will skip the Olympic Games. Britain's Prince Charles said in January he has "no plans to attend the ceremony."

    Source: http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/02/house.olympics/i...
    indigenousprodigy
  • I agree that boycotting the Olympics in China would not accomplish as much as atheletes and spectators from the world over making statements while in China. Who doesn't remember the Black atheletes from the US standing on the victor's podium with their gloved, clinched fists raised in the Black Power salute? The US (and the smirking monkey we have for a president) will not be making very strong statements against China any time soon because China own too many IOU's from the US's trade deficit with them and owns too many companies here in the US. They are our landlords to a degree; we have sold our soul to the devil for economic gains.
    nyingma13
  • Wow that must be one of the creepiest pictures ever!!
    BetterWatching
  • The Olympic games are, yes, supposed to be a fraternal event, symbolic of peace and brotherhood, however, the crimes against humanity being committed by China in both Tibet and Darfur, as well as within China itself are far, far too great to be ignored.While bringing attention to these crises without sullying the Olympic games would be wonderful, I believe that in today's world it is nearly impossible to bring these events to the forefront of global attention in any other manner.
    I do not feel that teams as a whole should boycott, but that the decision to speak out or to keep quiet; to boycott or to compete should be left to the individual athlete. I would love to see athletes speaking out or boycotting entirely.
    Yes, boycotting Chinese good would be more effective, but so few Americans are aware of why we would even consider taking those steps, especially one that great. We must inform before we can really act, and in this case boycotting the Olympics may be just the tool we need.
    indigenousprodigy
  • Hey sorry to go back in time, but calPer said something about Pele and Berlin in '44? What is that bout?
    fernandez_is_go
  • http://current.com/items/88891002_olympic_moment_1936_j...
    I was totally incorrect sorry, my bad. =(
    I was thinking of this. . . .

    Pele actually wasn't born till 1940, so he definately wasnt in the 1944 Olympics.
    CalPerr
  • http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Olym...
    Nations who have boycotted past Olympics.
    CalPerr

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