France: Torch Relay Should Not Mask Olympic Rights Abuses
07 Apr 2008 16:22:36 GMT
Source: Human Rights Watch
(Paris, April 7, 2008) – President Nicolas Sarkozy and Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë should use the occasion of the Olympic Torch's passage through Paris on Monday, April 7, to highlight ongoing abuses in China linked to the Beijing Games, Human Rights Watch said today.
On March 25, French President Nicolas Sarkozy suggested that he might reconsider attending the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games, in response to the Chinese government's harsh crackdown on protests in Tibet in recent weeks. On April 2, Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë announced that City Hall will display a banner supporting human rights when the Olympic torch relay passes through the French capital because, "Paris defends human rights all over the world." A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman responded by urging French politicians to "respect the Olympic spirit, take a responsible attitude and refrain from instigating disturbances to the Olympic torch relay at the violation of the people's wishes."
