At this moment the president of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, is wishing the Games were going to Toronto.
… The president … called on the authorities in Beijing to respect their “moral engagement†to improve human rights in the months leading up to the Games and to provide the news media with greater access to the country. He also described the protests that have dogged the international Olympics torch relay as a “crisis†for the organization. …
I still don’t believe any athletes will boycott the Games. I certainly hope not.
Long predicting that the world attention of the Olympics will precipitate major changes in China, I see this media pressure on their aged overlords as a positive thing. It will be good for the people of China, long term.
So long as protests are non-violent, and involve no athlete boycott, I am for them.
The Journey of Harmony has been the biggest disaster for IOC so far.
original from London – flickr – Kaustav Bhattacharya
Don’t expect China to instantly become a shining Democracy. (Some hope for another South Korea, positively influenced by hosting the Seoul Olympics.) But everyone in Beijing now knows that change is coming. They’ll deny, deny, deny — all the while frantically making plans to manage that change.
Leave a comment if you have an opinion.
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