CSW welcomes the announcement of a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics by the United States, on account of widespread human rights violations perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

In a statement issued on 6 December White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the US could not carry on with “business as usual in the face of the [People’s Republic of China]’s egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang.”

Human rights groups have welcomed the move, as has the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), whose Vice Chair Nury Turkel said: “The Chinese government’s systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom and other human rights of Uyghur Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Christians, Falun Gong practitioners, and many others betray the Olympic spirit.”

The announcement follows repeated calls for an international diplomatic boycott of the Games, including from British MPs and Members of the European Parliament.

It also comes just days after the Chinese government held a national conference on religious affairs from 3-4 December in Beijing. During the conference, China’s leader Xi Jinping stressed the need to continue promoting the recognition of the Chinese nation, the CCP, and socialism with Chinese characteristics among religious communities, emphasising that “religious personages and believers should be guided to cultivate core socialist values and put them into practice and promote Chinese culture.” Xi claimed that, since 2012, religions in China have become increasingly “Chinese in orientation”, and urged the need to foster a group of religious figures that are “politically reliable”.

In reality, under Xi’s leadership, the situation of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) has deteriorated rapidly and significantly amid a wider crackdown on human rights. The reality of the right to FoRB for religion and belief communities in China varies according to religion, location, ethnicity, and attitude of local officials, among other factors, however no group has been immune from human rights violations, the most egregious of which amount to the arrest, imprisonment, torture and even deaths in custody of religion or belief adherents.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: “CSW welcomes the US’ announcement of a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics, and we urge other states to follow suit. Uyghurs, Christians, Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists, Falun Gong practitioners and others continue to suffer under a grave and ongoing crackdown on religion or belief across the country, while the authorities also target anyone who stands up for human rights. As long as this goes on, governments should take this opportunity to demonstrate that there can be no business as usual while these atrocities are taking place, and states must continue to hold China to account for its egregious violations at every opportunity both in public and in private.”