My native is close to Tibet. Recently Baichung Bhutia, the captain of Indian football Team refused to carry the Olympic torch citing personal reasons of having few Tibetan friends. Seeing this, I believe most of my friends have already taken a hard stand.
However, I beg to differ. I started to think why my country is supporting an oppressive government. I tried searching and found some answers:
On one side is the appeal of the Tibetans against an oppressive government. The next case is of sports being a symbol of peace, friendship where allies, rival nations come together and fight in spirit peacefully.
The common man is left in dilemma. In one front the government supports Tibetans refugees to stage protest, though on a tight security. On the other hand they ask for participation on the part of the nation on the upcoming Olympics. Here are few viewpoints:
Government of India: Suresh Kalmadi, the IOA (Indian Olympic Association) president states “We are hosting Commonwealth Games on 2010, what if some nations want to boycott it citing our human rights violations in Kashmir”. As the old parable goes – If Olympics must go only to a land free of sins, they would be hard pressed to find a worthy venue on this planet.
Colin Gonsalves of India Center of Human Right says “India has a poor record on human rights, from Kashmir to Gujarat to the North East. India has gone to trade on Darfur even when western nations withdrew. The Govt. even supports Myanmar’s inhuman regime”.
Some analysts even believe that the violence in Kashmir is more aggravated than what’s happening in Tibet. The problem is that security personnel’s get away publicly for the crimes committed by them in our country.
The fact that when you have skeletons in your backyard, you do not dare to point fingers at someone else.
Olympic Federation: On one hand they insist that politics and sports must be kept separate. On the other, it relies entirely on governments to stage its quadrennial show.
Olympics have always been clouded with politics since 1936 when western nations boycotted Olympics in Berlin. The western nations especially US maintained intense debate on conducting Olympics on the Nazi land. However certain Afro-American nations didn’t support its boycott because they wanted to bring down the feeling of Aryan Supremacy, predominant those times. Jesse Owens, an Afro-American maintained their point by winning 4 gold medals.
Since then most of the Olympics have been clouded with cases of political injustice. China was once boycotted from conducting Olympics few decades back for attacking its neighbour. The next Olympics will be held on Britain. If it does not take a back seat on the war with Iraq and Iran, it may too face the same heat.
China: The gross insult and indifference provided to the Olympic torch at various nations has further strengthened the feeling of nationalism in China, thanks to the propaganda mechanism by the government.
According to a survey, 79% of the capital’s residents are eagerly anticipating the Olympics.
However there are darker sides too. In Feb, a political activist Yang Chunlin was sentenced for five years imprisonment for posting an internet appeal which said “ We want human rights, not Olympics”. Ya Changwa, a farmer leader who protested the illegal seizure of land by shouting,” We want land, we do not want the Olympics”, was sentenced to labor camp for 2 years. The charges: “Endangering State Security”.
How much China poses to show the goodwill promoted by Olympics , the fact remains that Olympics has been nothing but its propaganda tool to show China’s emergence as a dominating nation, a superpower.
Tibet: When Chinese runners started with Aamir Khan to promote the spirit of Olympics, it did generate a similar sort of run on the Tibetans side. They ran with a torch fed with buttermilk. On one side there was a fake show of spirit, on the other side high energy, combined with the determination to show the right spirit of Tibet.
China considers Dalai Lama as a poser, as a radical. To Tibetans, he is their representative defying the oppressive Chinese government. This coming Olympics was the right time for their plight to be heard internationally. But sadly, this world itself is a poser.
Sportspersons: The sportspersons are the greatest losers in the boycott. A boycott dashes years of effort to win medals or at least participate in the Olympics. Olympics happen every 4 years, so many careers and dreams could end here.
Historian and writer Mukul Kesaran states “There’s no question that sportspersons get hurt. But the basic truth is that sports are less important than larger political issues. When a choice is to be made over political injustice, it’s reasonable for people to say that there should be no symbolic or recreational events with countries that are monsters”
But the ‘monsters’ perception can be quite subjective. Today it’s China. Tomorrow…
Common Man: Who suffers if this Olympics is boycotted? The elite leaders of China for not fulfilling the dreams of showing the rise of China. The leaders who are oppressing Tibet? No, it’s the common man. History will repeat again. Their hopes and aspirations of common will again be crushed. Their sacrifices for promoting this Olympic in the hope of better future will go in vain.
Sometimes, so helpless we may feel when we see nations developing at the expense of others. Exploitation of nations by nations still exists, very openly.
-- Certain quotes from The Outlook, April 22 - 28, 2008. Article: Sports and Human Rights