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Scott Morrison has confirmed that the Australian authorities will not be involved in Beijing Winter Olympics, joined the United States in a diplomatic boycott of next year ‘s Games.
Morrison told reporters in Sydney that it was not surprising as diplomatic relations between Australia and Australia deteriorated. Chinathat officials will not take part in next year’s Winter Games.
“Australian athletes do, however,” the prime minister said on Wednesday. “Australia is a great sports nation, and I distinguish between sports and other political issues.”
Morrison said he wanted long-term tensions between Australia and China resolved, but his government did not intend to “retreat from the strong position we had to defend Australia’s interests”.
To confirm the diplomatic boycott, Morrison raised human rights violations in Xinjiang as one of the factors Australia had “steadily raised.” He said the Chinese government was not ready to discuss Australia’s human rights concerns.
The prime minister was asked if he expected a response from China in response. Morrison said all retaliation would be “totally and utterly unacceptable and unfounded.”
Australia remained open to dialogue with China, “whether it was their concern about our foreign disruption legislation or foreign investment rules”. But he reiterated that Australia would pursue a policy in the national interest.
The New Zealand government said on Tuesday it would not send ministerial-level diplomats to the Winter Olympics, citing “many factors, but mostly Covid”.
This has also been confirmed by the Biden administration The United States continues its diplomatic boycott. White House press secretary Jen Psaki mentioned China “going to the genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang and other human rights violations.”
That decision got a furious reaction From the Chinese government, which vehemently denies crimes against humanity or all abuses In Xinjiang and accused Washington of “posting and political manipulation.” High officials tried to reject the boycott, saying U.S. officials said however, had not been invited, but state media also reported that Beijing had made “tough performances” to the United States.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian had warned of undefined “retaliation.” Zhao, who was asked at a regular press conference on Tuesday to clarify, only said the United States would “pay the price for its wrongdoing” and observers “can wait and see.”
On Wednesday, a spokesman for foreign affairs for the Labor Party Penny Wong, and sports spokesman Don Farrell said the opposition party supported the decision because the Labor Party was “deeply concerned” about the continuing violations of rights in China and the safety of athletes due to conditions of tennis player Peng Shuai.
“This decision, along with diplomatic boycotts by other countries, sends a strong signal that this is not the behavior of a responsible global superpower,” they said, adding that it was “appropriate” for athletes not to make sacrifices.
“Our athletes have been training hard for this opportunity for years and didn’t choose where the Winter Olympics will be held.”
The Australian Olympic Committee responded to Morrison’s statement, saying it respected “the fact that diplomatic options are a matter for the government and that politics and sport must be separated”.
“Our Australian athletes have been training and competing with this Olympic dream for four years now and we are doing everything we can to make sure we can help them succeed,” said Committee CEO Matt Carroll.
“Human rights are very important, but the deliberate view of diplomats is that keeping communication channels open is much more effective than closing them down.”
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Sophie Richardson, China’s director of Human Rights Watch, said the boycott was a decisive step in challenging Beijing’s crimes against humanity.
“Australia should now redouble its efforts with like-minded governments to investigate and map out the pathways that lead to accountability for those crimes and justice for survivors.”
The diplomatic boycotts of the Olympics are the result of broader demands for control and commercial boycotts of the Games due to human rights violations by the Chinese government, while the Women’s Tennis Association has taken an unprecedented step by canceling all 2022 tournaments in China because of concerns tennis player Peng Shuai well-being. Peng was not seen for more than two weeks after he accused a senior Chinese official of his sexual exploitation.
The International Olympic Committee, which had been examined because it declared “silent diplomacy” in response to the Peng case, said it on Tuesday respected the U.S. boycott decision.
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