Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is good to see Senator Pauline O’Reilly in the Deputy Leader’s chair. I look forward to hearing her response to the Order of Business.

I raise the question of the Winter Olympics, which are to open in Beijing tomorrow. They will be the most shameful Olympic Games to have taken place since those in Berlin in 1936. We all know about the ongoing human rights abuses in China, such as the Uighur genocide and what has been happening in Hong Kong. Today I raise, in particular given it is an often forgotten conflict, the case of the people of Tibet. Freedom House has stated the human rights abuses in Tibet rank only with those of Syria in terms of their seriousness. It has found the Chinese Communist Party has oppressed the culture and language of the people of Tibet.

I welcome the fact the Minister of State with responsibility for sport, Deputy Chambers, indicated he will not attend the games, and I do not think we should give any diplomatic recognition to the games, but we also need to call out the sponsors of the games, one of which is Airbnb. In China, because it follows the rules of the Chinese Government, it will not allow any of its premises there to be let to somebody from a Uighur or Tibetan background. This is morally wrong.

There are other commercial sponsors, such as Coca-Cola, Toyota, Panasonic, Intel and Proctor and Gamble. All these commercial sponsors need to be called out for engaging in the propaganda purposes of the Chinese Communist Party. What is going on in China before our eyes is disgraceful and disgusting. The Irish Government has to stand up for the human rights of those who are being oppressed. The Olympic Games is an event that should inspire all of us, but the fact it is going ahead at all in Beijing - I do not believe the athletes should be disadvantaged - is morally wrong and we need also to call out those commercial sponsors that are involved. In this House, we have had strong debates on China. We need to send that message clearly to the commercial sponsors as well.