Excerpted from Reuters:
But Beijing's August 8-24 Olympics cannot escape Tibet because both involve chronic media freedom issues, said Sharon Hom, executive director of Human Rights in China.
"China's propaganda machine is trying to portray China as a free and open society, and clearly this is not the case," Hom said from her advocacy group's New York office, citing tightly controlled local press and foreign media's lack of access to Tibet.
China has been known to stoke nationalism by blaming foreigners for domestic problems while hiding internal problems.
"China has always done that," Hom said. "They blame any dissent in China on forces from abroad."
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For more information on this issue:
- HRIC Campaign:
Incorporating Responsibility 2008 Take Action Campaign - HRIC Press Statement:
Chinese Authorities Target Lawyers Offering Legal Assistance to Tibetans - HRIC Press Statement:
Chinese Lawyers Offer Legal Help to Detained Tibetans - HRIC Press Advisory:
Ethnic Minorities Remain Marginalized, Tensions Rise - HRIC Press Statement:
Five-Year Sentence of Olympics Critic Not Human Rights Progress - China Rights Forum No. 1, 2008:
One Slogan, Many Meanings: Bring Tibet to the 2008 Games - HRIC Press Advisory:
Stop Crackdowns in Tibet, Start Dialogue - HRIC Press Advisory:
HRIC Launches 2008 Take Action Website and Calls on China to Release Shi Tao - China Rights Forum No. 4, 2007:
Decline of Potala Palace - Woeser discusses the history of the Tibetan palace and the way Chinese-led economic development has changed its face. - China Rights Forum No. 4, 2007:
The Real Situation in Pre-Olympics China - Teng Biao and Hu Jia give their views about the situation on the ground in the countdown to the Olympics. - China Rights Forum No. 3, 2007:
2008 and Beyond - Articles, interviews, resource list, and campaign information focusing on the 2008 Beijing Olympics. - China Rights Forum No. 3, 2007:
A Tibetan Activist’s Beijing Blog - Lhadon Tethong kept her readers informed of her efforts to meet IOC president Jacques Rogge in Beijing, and her brief detention as a result.