China, which hosted the 2022 Winter Olympics, drew a diplomatic boycott of the games from the U.S. and a few other countries, but all athletes were still allowed to compete.
However, most engaged in a sort of self-censorship of their opinions on the issues the world has taken with the Chinese Communist Party -- such as Uyghur human rights violations -- fearing for their participation or safety in and during the Games. While the self-censorship directly related to the Games is over, it hasn't disappeared and may indeed be growing.
“Prior to the statement, we had been engaging with quite a few athletes," Pema Doma, campaigns director for Students for a Free Tibet, told the Associated Press. "They were expressing a lot of interest in learning more and being engaged in the human rights issue. Afterward, there was a very, very distinct difference, and one athlete even said to an activist directly: ‘I’ve been instructed not to take anything from you or speak to you.’”
Globe Banner reported in December that the U.S. issued a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing due to the questionable human rights record of the nation. Canada, Australia and the UK followed suit. Athletes were still allowed and encouraged to attend the games, however.
The Biden administration cited human rights concerns over the reports of cruelty against Uyghur Muslims in the country, with Reuters reporting that Biden called it "genocide." Globe Banner said that there have been reports of “labor transfer programs,” as well as torture, forced sterilization and forced marriages between Uyghur and non-Uyghur people. China has vehemently denied any human rights violations.
Though many athletes did choose to participate in the Olympics, some have been heavily discouraged and even unwillingly censored on social media when speaking out against China.
“We have seen an effective silencing of 2,800 athletes, and that’s scary," Noah Hoffman, a former U.S. Olympic cross-country skier, told the Associated Press. "There’s lots of really subtle pressure.”
Three-time Olympic freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy was one of the lone athletes to speak out against the Chinese regime.
"We’re in China, so we play by China’s rules," he told the Associated Press. "And China makes their rules as they go, and they certainly have the power to kind of do whatever they want: Hold an athlete, stop an athlete from leaving, stop an athlete from competing. I’ve also been advised to sort of tread lightly while I am here, and that’s what I am trying to do.”
Following the completion of his events, Kenworthy became more outspoken.
Relations between China and the rest of the world remain tense, even following the conclusion of the Winter Olympic Games.