Boycott light

All over the world, voices are raised in favour of boycotting the olympic games in Beijing. Today, Tomas Bodström - former Swedish minister of law - suggested a "light boycott": Sweden ought to boycott the inauguration as well as the closing cermony.

However, the current Swedish government wants no such thing. "Boycott is not a good instrument" says Swedish minister of sports Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth.

Thruth is, we Swedish lack guts. We did not stand up to Nazi Germany and now we are afraid to offend the Chinese communist regime.

I strongly believe it's time to make a stand. It's time for real politics.

The olympic ideals

The Chinese regime keeps repeating that the olympic ideals have nothing to do with human rights. I find this point of view incredibly ignorant. It's enough to read The Olympic Charter to understand exactly how false such a statement is:

Any form of discrimination with regard to a country or a person on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic Movement.

In Sweden I often get to hear that sports and politics should not be mixed. If I were an olympic athlete I would find this statement insulting. What are they? Sport robots for the pleasure of the masses? A propaganda tool?

My grandmother participated in the Berlin Olympic games 1936. She wrote in her diary that she and her Swedish country men refused to greet Hitler with the Nazi salute during the inauguration at the Berlin Olympiastadion.

Sports and politics have EVERYTHING to do with eachother.

Many small streams...

There is an old Swedish saying that goes "Many small streams make a great river". What it means is that many small, small actions can give big results.

How can a hard-working, stressed Average Joe possibly make anything to improve the tragical conflict between Tibet and China? Here is a list with suggestions:

1. Write an e-mail to the Swedish ministry for foreign affairs

2. Join "Students for a free Tibet" to participate in their Internet actions.

3. Study the history of Tibet and China.

4. Talk with friends and collegues. Make them interested.

5. Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.

I myself have worked with points 1 to 4. It doesn't take any time at all and it makes me feel really satisfied afterwards.

There are no quick fixes

Just next to where I grew up, in the outskirts of the small Swedish town Kalmar, the China Europe Business & Exhibition Center is being built.

Fanerdun Group AB has great plans: an enormous exibition centre in which Chinese grocery companies can promote their products for European costumers.

In February, I went with my wife to visit my parents in Kalmar. We went to the construction site and this is what we saw:

Nothing has happened for months, officially since the workers are celebrating the Chinese new year back in China but many now believe that the project is doomed. The reasons are many but the two main causes are probably cultural clashes and conflicts with the Swedish union.

As I see it, this is wonderful news. Not since I dislike the idea of an Chinese exhibition centre in Kalmar (on the contrary, I love it) but since this is an excellent opportonity for Sweden and China to learn from eachother. The Swedes can learn about Chinese culture and way of thinking. The Chinese can get insight about Swedish labour legislation and fundamental democratic rights.

Am i naive? Maybe. But I truly think this is the way the world works. There are no quick fixes.

Things have got to change

Ok, let's get down to business. The Chinese regime has to sit down with Tibetian representatives and talk. There is no other way.

The world is watching every move the Chinese regime makes. For the sake of Tibet and the Chinese people things have got to change.

Those who wish to take the world and control it
I see that they cannot succeed
The world is a sacred instrument
One cannot control it
The one who controls it will fail
The one who grasps it will lose

Who wrote this? Jesus? Muhammed? Gandhi?

No, the ancient Chinese sage Lao Tzu, 2500 years ago.

Hence, the right path for China can be found within China itself.

Proclamation

First, let's make one thing perfectly clear: I love Chinese culture.

I practice traditional Chinese kung-fu. I study taoism on my free time. I am very, very fond of the Chinese kitchen.

However...

I HATE and DESPISE the Chinese communist regime and what they have done and still do to China and their neighbour contries.

This is what this blog is about.