Financial Times endorses boycott of Olympic opening ceremonies

The Financial Times has endorsed boycotting the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony to send a message to Beijing that its brutal crackdown in Tibet is unacceptable to the world community:

Sanctions can work in the right circumstances. The sporting boycott and financial sanctions applied to apartheid South Africa are often cited as measures that helped drive South Africa’s white minority rulers to the negotiating table.[...]

A boycott only of the opening ceremony – essentially a boycott of the propaganda part of the proceedings but not of the sporting contest – is a more appealing idea.

Chinese leaders, who must be alarmed by the head of steam that is building up behind the boycott campaigns, should ease the international pressure (at least over Tibet) by swallowing their pride and talking to the Dalai Lama about real autonomy for Tibetans.

It is only with pressure that Beijing’s leadership has shown any real let-up in Tibet.  Those who say that China is somehow ”different,” and that losing “face” will only “provoke” China, should look at Xinjiang.  The effective lack of pressure and global concern there has given Beijing free reign to oppress the Uyghur people.  

Ultimately, Western political leaders are politicians accountable to their people.   They should ask themselves: “Do I want to be associated with the Chinese government’s massive propaganda display during the opening ceremonies?  Will my electorate like my presence being used by the Chinese government to legitimate its bloody crackdown in Tibet?”

The FT adds a note of caution, however.  The world should not do as US President Bill Clinton once did in linking China’s MFN trade status to human rights, only to back down.  That cave-in enormously set back human rights in China and Tibet, suggesting to Beijing that the West only gives lip service to human rights:

The worst outcome would be a bold call for a boycott followed by a humiliating climbdown, with western leaders meekly shuffling into their seats for a glorious opening ceremony; that would be a propaganda triumph for Beijing and undermine efforts to persuade China to improve its human rights record for years to come.