BOYCOTT BEIJING 2022: A Call For Action

We call on all governments and people, including all National Olympic Committees and Olympic athletes, to boycott the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The Chinese government is committing genocide against the Uyghur people and waging an unprecedented campaign of repression in East Turkistan, Tibet and Southern Mongolia, as well as an all-out assault on democracy in Hong Kong. At the same time, the Chinese Communist Party is engaged in a merciless crackdown on Chinese human rights defenders, activists, faith communities and journalists, and implementing an intense strategy of intimidation and geopolitical bullying against Taiwan.

Participating in the Beijing Olympic Games at this time would be tantamount to endorsing China’s genocide against the Uyghur people, and legitimizing the increasingly repressive policies of the totalitarian Chinese regime. In spite of Beijing’s failure to keep human rights promises made before the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, and despite repeated requests by affected peoples and human rights groups to move or delay the 2022 Beijing Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided to put profit before human lives and turn a blind eye to genocide.

It is now up to the international community to take action. In particular, we believe athletes are people of conscience who have the power to use their platforms to stop injustice. We call on them, and those who believe in the right of all people to exist and to live free from fear and oppression, to join our movement. Together we will stand against genocide and crimes against humanity and take action for democracy, freedom and human rights.

*The US State Department, the United Kingdom, Canadian and Dutch parliaments, and international legal experts have recognized China’s atrocities in East Turkistan [CH: Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region] as “genocide”.