Kheiriddin: Boycotting Beijing 2022 may not change China, but it will spoil its glory

The jury is also out on what past boycotts achieved. The 1976 boycott is seen as one of several major international events that preceded the dismantling of apartheid in South Africa. The 1980 boycott preceded the eventual demise of the U.S.S.R. But did the boycotts themselves help pave the way for change, or were they simply the product of change already in the air? The 1980 boycott arguably had little impact on politics, but enormous impact on the athletes who could not attend, and were still bitter about it decades later.

There is no question that the spectacle of sport can positively position a country on the world stage. The unboycotted 1936 Berlin Olympics represented a successful Nazi propaganda exercise, duping the world into viewing Germany as a peaceful nation. Most of the other partial boycotts have been relegated to Wikipedia mentions, and are not raised in the current debate. In contrast, the 1980 Moscow Games are remembered more for who stayed away than for any display of Soviet prowess.

In other words, unless a boycott is widely supported, the likelihood of positive press for the host nation remains very high. Despite all the issues that dog the Olympics, from doping to governance scandals, hosting the event remains a major credibility booster — and the most compelling reason to support a boycott. China does not just victimize the Uyghurs and people of Hong Kong, but all its citizens, through its maintenance of an Orwellian military surveillance state. Allowing Beijing its moment in the sun is a betrayal of the billions of citizens it keeps in the dark. Is that a situation the rest of the world is prepared to accept?