Tibet and the Olympics

World leaders must hold China accountable for violating the commitments it made in order to host the Games.

CHINA IS CRACKING down on Tibetans for protesting Chinese repression. Reports from Tibet and neighboring provinces paint an image of chaos and destruction perpetrated by both sides, with bodies lining streets and hospital rooms, and police trotting door to door rounding up suspected "splittists." The sudden burst of civilian violence was startling and deplorable, but a protest of some kind after decades of religious and cultural subjugation seemed inevitable. Now the world -- and the International Olympic Committee, which seems to have granted China free rein to crush "unharmonious" elements in the name of international sportsmanship -- must hold Beijing accountable.

International reaction to the violence has been halting and tentative. Foreign governments have urged China to use "restraint" in dealing with protesters. No one can know, however, if China is responding to that request, because the government cut off media access to the region. Many international leaders rejected suggestions that further brutality should lead to a boycott of the Olympics. IOC President Jacques Rogge similarly argued against a boycott without acknowledging that China is reneging on the commitments it made in exchange for hosting the Games.

In bidding for the Olympics, Chinese officials argued in 2001 that international attention would improve the country's human rights policies. China also signed a host city contract -- which the IOC refuses to release -- that lists the conditions China agreed to. An IOC spokeswoman says the document does not include "elements on human rights." The contract does, however, contain a section on media access, and it surely must mandate adherence to the Olympic Charter, which promotes "a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity." At the very least China appears to be violating these provisions, given that it is suppressing news coverage of Tibet and punishing domestic journalists and dissidents (such as Hu Jia, who was tried earlier this week) for exercising rights guaranteed by not only the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but also by China's own constitution.

China's recent deeds in Tibet are just the latest ammunition that foreign leaders and the IOC have to remind Beijing of its Olympic promises. International inaction will hurt not only the Chinese people but will also undermine the hope that any future Olympic host will feel the need to uphold the commitment to "human dignity." Don't believe us? Just take a look at the country most fervently sticking up for China right now: Russia, the lucky host of the 2014 Winter Games.