PRESS RELEASE
8th December 2021
Muslim Council of Britain reiterates call for full UK Diplomatic Boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics
The Muslim Council of Britain welcomes the Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s statement in the House of Commons today that “no ministers are expected to attend” the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics but calls on the UK government to ensure it is a full – not partial – boycott covering all British officials, diplomats and any other political representatives of the UK.
The MCB is calling for the event to be shunned at the Chinese capital because of the systematic and wilful oppression of Uyghur Muslims and other Turkic minorities in Xinjiang/East Turkestan.
Writing to the Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss, the Muslim Council of Britain’s Secretary General, Zara Mohammed, urged the UK government to enact a full diplomatic boycott. “Our government must send a strong signal to the Chinese regime who are systematically and brutally oppressing Uyghur Muslims.”
The MCB has urged the UK government to follow the lead of the United States who announced their intention to impose a boycott earlier this month.
Working with Uyghur Muslim communities in the UK, the Muslim Council of Britain has been advocating for Uyghur rights for a number of years and earlier this year, led calls for a boycott of the Beijing games.
ENDS.
Notes to editors:
- MCB is the UK’s largest and most diverse Muslim representative umbrella body with over 500 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools.
- For any media enquiries, please contact: [email protected]
- Click here for previous MCB statements on Uighur Muslims, including:
- Beijing Olympics 2022: We must exercise our conscience, MCB Opinion Piece, Feb 2021
- Supporting genocide amendment to Trade Bill, Jan 2021
- Submission to Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Dec 2020
- Writing to Foreign Secretary, July 2020
- Other statements, events and initiatives here, here, here, here and more.