Now that former President Trump is no longer in office, apparently, it’s now fashionable to join him in condemning the Chinese genocide of the Uighur population.
The Trump Administration was the first to label Chinese treatment of the Uighurs as genocide. Now, the Canadian House has voted unanimously to do the same. What’s more, the declaration calls on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to remove the 2022 Olympic games from China if the genocide continues.
The Trudeau government abstained from the vote.
The move follows calls from Erin O’Toole, the leader of the Official Opposition of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, to strip the 2022 Olympics away from Beijing.
“I think Canadians would agree that it would violate universal fundamental ethical principles to participate in an Olympic Games hosted by a country that is committing a genocide against part of its population,” O’Toole said at a press conference.
O’Toole added, “It’s only if [relocation] is not possible and there’s no change in conduct by the state of China that we should examine whether our athletes compete.”
The abstention of the Trudeau government robs the declaration of some much-needed teeth. Also, as Outkick points out, the declaration would have much more weight if any of the pro sports leagues who do business with China, notably the NBA, would add their support to the resolution.