Tibet: November 2008 Archives

By Steven Erlanger | INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE
November 26, 2008

PARIS: China has postponed an annual summit with the European Union originally scheduled for next Monday, the Europeans said in a statement on Wednesday. The Chinese were evidently angered by a new visit to several European countries by the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

"The European Union, which set ambitious aims for the 11th European Union-China summit, takes note and regrets this decision by China," the statement said. According to the Europeans, the Chinese "said their decision was due to the fact that the Dalai Lama will at the same time undertake a new visit in several countries of the union and will meet on this occasion heads of state and government."

One of those leaders is President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, who intends to meet the Dalai Lama in Poland in December at a ceremony honoring Lech Walesa, the anti-Communist leader of Solidarity and later Polish president. France holds the presidency of the European Union until the end of the year, so the Chinese postponement is thought to be aimed at France more than at the other nations of the union.

Two weeks ago, China warned that the planned meeting could hurt relations between France and China, but Sarkozy had already side-stepped a meeting with the Dalai Lama earlier this year in France to avoid offending the Chinese, though he sent his wife, Carla, and his foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, to represent France.

Relations were strained before the Beijing Olympics when Sarkozy, pressed by public opinion after the latest Chinese crackdown in Tibet, said that his presence as European Union president at the games would depend on progress in talks between Beijing and the Dalai Lama's envoys on the future of Tibet. The progress was considered scant and temporary, but it was sufficient for Sarkozy to attend.

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By Christine Brennan | USA TODAY
October 30, 2008

China's government was so concerned about the possibility of athlete demonstrations in the Beijing Olympics that it created a list of nine U.S. athletes and one assistant coach it thought might cause trouble at the Games, according to an internal U.S. Olympic Committee e-mail obtained by USA TODAY.

The names included softball players Jennie Finch and Jessica Mendoza and soccer player Abby Wambach, who broke her leg and missed the Olympic Games. It also included two Paralympians, one athlete who wasn't a member of the 2008 softball team and a top female collegiate golfer. Golf is not an Olympic sport.

"We viewed these concerns as being entirely unjustified and unwarranted," USOC spokesman Darryl Seibel said in an e-mail Wednesday. "As such, we rejected the request to address this with our athletes or transmit the letter to them. We saw absolutely no need to burden the athletes with this."

The list was given to USOC officials in a July 8 meeting by Shu Xiao, minister counselor for cultural affairs at the Chinese embassy in Washington, according to the e-mail.

"The subject matter had to do with information the Chinese have received regarding the intention of certain members of the U.S. Olympic team to stage some sort of demonstration at the Games, perhaps displaying banners or wearing apparel or wrist bands bearing political slogans," the e-mail stated. It added that Shu said "many of them" were "apparently associated with Team Darfur," an international coalition of athletes committed to raising awareness about the crisis in Darfur, Sudan.

"Shu appeared quite concerned over the prospect of such demonstrations and asked what we could do," according to the e-mail.

Seibel said the USOC "communicated to the Embassy in very clear terms that our athletes would have the same right to free speech and free expression, consistent with what is set forth in the Olympic Charter, that they have enjoyed at previous Games. We made certain those rights would in no way be infringed upon or compromised."

The USOC was concerned and alerted its team leaders of those sports in which athletes were named.There were no incidents involving the athletes in China, and after months of conversation about possible athlete protests over Darfur, Tibet or China's treatment of dissidents, none materialized at the Games.

"This may be the biggest compliment of my life," Wambach, a member of Team Darfur, said in a phone interview when informed of the list. "If they're worried about us, maybe we do have more strength as athletes and as people to speak out. This just gives me more empowerment."

"It doesn't surprise me but it makes me laugh," said Mendoza, who also is president-elect of the Women's Sports Foundation. "We're not burning our shirts and ranting and raving. We're just trying to help thousands of people from dying."

Phone calls to the Chinese embassy Wednesday afternoon went unanswered.

>> Full transcript from source