None of the Nordic countries’ prime ministers are ready to boycott the summer Olympics in China.
“I’ll make my decision in the summer but I’m likely to take part in the opening ceremony” said Finnish prime minister Matti Vanhanen (centre) from Sweden.
None of his colleagues are planning to travel to Beijing but the Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen underlines that this shouldn’t be seen as a political position, “I didn’t take part in the opening ceremony in Greece either”
The Norwegian prime minister Jens Stoltenberg commented that one should never say never but was extremely doubtful that a boycott would have the desired effect, “Even the Dalai Lama isn’t calling for a boycott”.
The prime ministers are taking part in the Nordic Globalisation Forum in Riksgränsen in Sweden. The host is the Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, who also has firmly rejected the idea of a boycott, “Sweden shall not boycott the Olympic games, neither opening ceremony nor any other aspect”.
Reinfeldt has come under a lot of criticism during the last few weeks, particularly from the Swedish opposition Social Democrats, for his planned official visit to China this coming Saturday.
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Wednesday 9.4.08 at 15:20
Eastern promise
At the moment, it looks like the opinion’s not in favour of a boycott. So of course Vanhanen says he’ll prob go. He’s centre party – which ever way the wind blows, they follow it. I bet after a few more months of China shooting dead Tibetans, opinion will change, and suddenly he will find he has already got an appointment somewhere else on opening ceremony day.
Wednesday 9.4.08 at 20:13
Anonymous
Beijing’s olympics are the 21st century Berlin olympics. Look at the thug Chinese guards who are accompanying the torch in the torch relay. Look at what China has said today, anyone who creates trouble in Tibet when the flame goes there will be dealt with “without mercy”. Disgrace. The Chinese have made this olympics about politics, it’s not just sport as they claim. So of course the Finnish prime minister should not go.
Thursday 10.4.08 at 5:58
workidda
http://www.thewe.cc/contents/more/archive/atrocities.htm