Boycott the Olympics in 2008?

I have heard recently in the news that presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are advocating a United States boycott of the 2008 Olympic games if they Chinese government does not take steps to secure human rights to the Tibetan people and to stop the genocide in Darfur. I am happy to see the candidates taking up the cause for human rights in China.

However, why were these same candidates silent on the Tibetan issue before? Why did they wait until the Tibetan people protested even to mention it? Why, back when the Olympics location was being chosen did the human rights of China not become and issue then? It seems to me this is one of the thing that is wrong with our politicians today. They only deal with the important issues, when the citizenship becomes aware of them. It seems to me, if we the people, are unaware of a human rights problem in a country, then they can get away with not dealing with the issue. I do not understand this. Is it that the Tibetan people were treated just great up to a few months ago? We know this is not true, violations of human right have been going on for a LONG TIME in China, now all of the sudden, the candidates and the politicians are talking about it. I doubt they would even be talking about it now, accept that the Olympics is only a few months away.

The Tibetans are not the only one suffering under Chinese rule by the way. There is no religious freedom in China. Have you heard about that? China used a system of "re-education through labor" that detains hundreds of thousands of its own citizens each year in work camps without even any of them getting their day in court. Christian persecution is also high in this country. Registered "Christian" churches are required to preach and teach the the things of the Bible that the government deems acceptable. As a result there is an underground house church movement so that Christians there can learn the whole counsel of God's word. According to Voice of the Martyrs, "More Christians are in prison or under detention in China than any other country...China's Christians, endure unimaginable persecution..." To learn about just some of the Christians suffering for their faith in China, you can visit the Prisoner Alert page. Browse through this site and you will see the stories of some of the many Christians persecuted for there faith, in many countries, including China.

Let us remember in this year of the summer Olympics, not only to keep our eye on human rights for the Tibetans, but also for other Christians around the world.

Lord God, I pray you remind us to pray for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ being persecuted around the world, to remember them in our prayers, and to encourage them when we are able. Amen.