A resolution in the U.S. House of Representatives has been introduced, urging the International Olympic Committee not to select Beijing as host of the 2008 Olympic Games unless human rights conditions improve in China.
Rep. Tom Lantos, who introduced the bill, said “the human rights record of the People’s Republic of China is abominable–and it is getting worse, not better. It is completely inconsistent with the Olympic ideal to hold the Games in Beijing”.
The resolution sites “deplorable” human rights abuses such as censorship, torture and mistreatment of prisoners, violence against women, child abuse and denial of freedom of religion and assembly.
But the resolution praises Chinese Olympic athletes now participating in Sydney, noting they have placed third in the number of metals earned.
