Fans cheering on the sidelines, athletes pumping their arms in the air, winners holding gold medals. The 2022 Beijing Olympics illustrates a utopia where the world’s single priority is establishing dominance through their athletic competition–a world where genocide doesn’t exist. Yet, it does. The Chinese government has been accused of commiting genocide against the Ugyhurs population in Xinjiang, which is the western region of China. China is also being accused of targeting Muslim figures and banning their religious practices in the region. There are roughly 12 million Uyghurs, who are predominantly Muslim, living in Xinjiang. They speak a language that is similar to the Turkish and they are in fear that their culture is going to be erased.
Although it may seem this ethnic-cleansing has just begun due to the popularity of the Winter Olympics, China has been detaining Uyghurs and other Muslims ever since 2017. They are being victimized based on their religion, the Chinese authorities have labeled the Uyghurs “as extremists simply for practicing their religion (CFR).” There are reports of the sterilization of Uyghur women, so that China can stop the reproduction of their population and even the separation of families, however China has been denying all allegations that have been brought forth to them. There was evidence found by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute that there are more than 380 re-education camps and that was a 40 percent increase from the last collected data. The Chinese government released a statement saying that they liberated all of their detainees from the re-education camp system in 2019, however that is far from the truth. There are still many Uyghurs imprisoned in camps and serving prison time.
The Chinese government is masking their repulsive actions with the 2022 Olympics, they are partaking in sports washing – a practice by which a country uses sporting events to distract from human rights abuses or other issues. In the beginning of 2022, Amnesty International warned states to not partake in China’s effort to hide their violations, countries such as the U.S, Canada do not want to be complicit in the political propaganda of the Chinese Government. It is heartbreaking that the competing athletes cannot use their political platform to raise awareness to these issues, the athletes are being told not to make political statements or protest because there will be consequences. China is silencing the athletes' voices.
I think the United States should be more involved in this matter and not turn a blind eye; I think that only undergoing a diplomatic boycott is not enough to make a difference in the vulnerable lives that are being impacted in China. On the other hand, I do believe that the popularity of the Olympics is shedding light on the human rights violations that are taking place in Xinjiang, China; This increased publicity can potentially raise enough awareness where other countries can take action against China or make them cease to violate the rights of Uyghurs and Muslims. The United States can raise taxes on exported goods, so that we can weaken China’s economic power.
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