2022 Beijing Olympics leaves no lofty promises this time

The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing displayed China’s reemergence on the international stage. The International Olympic Committee projected that the Olympics will promote human rights when it awarded the Games to China, and Chinese authorities have hinted at the same.

The Beijing Winter Olympics, which will begin in just over a week, will be held in the midst of a two-year-long pandemic.

The Olympics serve as a reminder of China’s rise, prompting a diplomatic boycott by the United States, which has labelled China’s detention of at least one million Uyghurs as a genocide.

China refers to the claims of the human rights organisations that they identified “forced labour, widespread incarceration, and torture” in the country, as the “lie of the century.”

China appears to be less concerned about global criticism. The country has a greater political, economic and military weight than it did 13 1/2 years ago. The pandemic has given it more control over the Olympics, especially with the isolation of visiting media, who are isolated from the rest of the Chinese populace in a “bubble.”

When it came to awarding China the Games for the second time, the IOC had few options. Six potential European applicants, led by Norway. Sweden, have withdrawn due to political or financial concerns. Referendums in two other nations, Switzerland and Germany, resulted in “no” votes.

In a close vote, IOC members chose Beijing over Almaty, Kazakhstan. After the IOC declared there was an electronic error in the first vote, the outcome was decided on paper ballots. Beijing is the first city in the world to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.

Beijing, according to IOC President Thomas Bach, is a “safe choice.” The 2008 Olympics in China cost more than $40 billion to organise. To move forward, the authoritarian state does not require public permission.

Kazakhstan was rocked by major protests and political instability on the eve of the Olympics this month. On February 4, the opening ceremony will be held in the Bird’s Nest once more.