Some Criticisms Facing Beijing Olympics

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | The New York Times
February 15, 2008

Key criticisms facing Beijing's staging of the Aug. 8-24 Olympics:

FOREIGN POLICY -- Hollywood director Steven Spielberg announced Tuesday he would no longer act as an artistic adviser for the games' opening and closing ceremonies to protest China's support for the Sudanese government, which is accused of human rights abuses in Darfur. Beijing has also been petitioned by Nobel Peace Prize laureates, former Olympians and 120 members of the U.S. Congress.

AIR POLLUTION -- Athletes have been told to arrive late and leave early to avoid hot, polluted air, and Britain, the United States and other countries are considering supplying their athletes with breathing masks. International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge has warned that some events could be postponed and Haile Gebrselassie, recognized as the world's greatest distance runner, said he might skip the Olympic marathon altogether.------

RELIGIOUS RESTRICTIONS -- China's officially atheistic communist government maintains strict controls over all religious activity, and is reportedly ferreting out clandestine missionaries ahead of the games. Despite that, evangelical groups say they plan to be active in Beijing. Together with expected protests by the banned F.... G.... *** spiritual movement, that poses the likelihood of protests and arrests that could tarnish the games' image. Protesters have also rallied against Chinese control over the Buddhist region of Tibet.

PRESS GAGS -- China's state-controlled media is tightly leashed and press freedom groups regard the country as the world's leading jailer of journalists. China pledged to allow full freedom during the games and has lifted some restrictions over foreign media, but reporters and monitors say the government has failed to live up to those commitments.

HUMAN RIGHTS -- International human rights groups such as Amnesty International have urged governments, Olympic sponsors and individuals to pressure China to free political prisoners and ratify a key U.N. rights accord. Seeking to avoid controversy, Britain's Olympic Association asked its athletes to sign an agreement pledging not to speak out on political issues, but later backed down, saying that appeared to go beyond IOC rules.