
 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
April 17, 2008
/ 12 Nissan 5768
China's flame of shame
By
Nat Hentoff
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
At an April 3 press conference in Beijing, International Olympic Committee Hein Verbruggen asked about human rights in China, said comfortably, as reported by Human Rights Watch, that the IOC "can easily prove that bringing the Games here has led to improvements." But after the Olympic torch came close to being extinguished by thousands of protesters in Athens, Paris, London and San Francisco, the shaken IOC President Jacques Rogge told The New York Times (April 11) that the tumultuous reaction is creating a "crisis" for that august institution.
A demonstrator in San Francisco, speaking of the torch-relay reception, called that symbol "the flame of shame." To prevent further crises, Rogge finally called for China to hold to the guarantees it gave to get the games: "a 'moral engagement' to improve human rights in the months leading up to the Games" and an assurance there would be unfettered press freedom for international media before and during the Olympics.
But as the world has seen, hundreds of Chinese human-rights activists and journalists have been imprisoned, and foreign telecommunications companies have been banned from showing live shots of Tiananmen Square (site of the 1989 massacre of Chinese pro-democracy students) during the games while foreign reports from Tibet are being blacked out.
The Chinese response to Rogge's request that it live up its guarantees was indignant rejection, and a demand that the IOC stop meddling in China's internal affairs.
Rogge, while not at all demanding that the torch relay, which began in 1936 to celebrate the coming of the Olympics to Nazi Germany, be stopped, is aware that his long silence on China's broken pledges has led to such attacks on his organization as a charge by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders that "It is your silence that has unfortunately made all these human rights abuses possible."
Rogge has broken that silence because not only China's standing in the world has been further blackened, but the IOC is fast losing stature, endangering the credibility for years to come of its mission, as proclaimed in its charter, to promote "a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity."
In a further blow to China, and to the IOC's startling decision to award the games to that grim state, the European Parliament (BBC, April 10) passed a nonbinding (but resonating) resolution that its members' leaders consider not attending the opening ceremonies of China's "One World, One Dream" events (now a nightmare) unless that imperious nation engages in a dialogue with the Dalai Lama (who has not called for a boycott of the games), and stops it repressions in Tibet.
How long will this surge of moral concern by the European Parliament and the International Olympic Committee last? Long before Rogge's sudden recognition of this "crisis," Human Rights Watch had urged him to raise with the Chinese government the jailing for 3-1/2 years of China's leading human rights activist, 34-year-old Hu Jia.
As Human Rights Watch's Asia advocacy director, Sophie Richardson, had reminded Rogge: "Hu Jia's sentence shows that you can't defend human rights in China without becoming a case yourself."
The charge against Hu Jia and many other brave Chinese who have reported to the world their struggles to begin an opening for democracy, is "incitement to subvert state power." Hu Jia's wife, Zeng Jinyan, is also a fearless, internationally known human-rights champion. Their daughter born last November, a few weeks before her father's imprisonment is under house arrest along with her mother.
Will IOC president Rogge try to pay a visit to them between the Beijing sporting events in August?
Unintentionally, of course, having the Olympics in China has shone harsh light on China's crimes in Tibet and its complicity in the genocide in Darfur conducted by Sudan, China's primary business partner, protector and arms supplier. Present at the protest in San Francisco was Muhdy Bahradin, a Darfur refugee, who told the New York Sun (April 10):
"I lost a lot of my students, my family members, my relatives in the genocide. This (demonstration) isn't political. ... This is about human beings. This is about human lives."
However, on Sept. 11, Coca-Cola spokesman Kelly Brooks (a corporate sponsor of the Olympics) told The New York Times: "We firmly believe the Olympics are a force for good that celebrates the best in sports, and we are proud to support the Beijing 2008 Olympics.
The Wall Street Journal (March 17) reports that Coca Cola and other corporations have paid as much as $120 million, according to some estimates, to sponsor Beijing's Olympics. President Bush will be there.
Happy viewing, Mr. President!
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Nat Hentoff is a nationally renowned authority on the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights and author of several books, including his current work, "The War on the Bill of Rights and the Gathering Resistance". Comment by clicking here.
Nat Hentoff Archives
© 2006, NEA
| |

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Tony Blankley
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Alan Douglas
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
Marybeth Hicks
David Horowitz
Jeff Jacoby
Renee James
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Ben Wattenberg
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

Mr. Know-It-All
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
Tech Maven
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|