WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Rick Scott spoke with Anita DeFrantz, International Olympic Committee (IOC) Vice President, to discuss his call for the IOC to stand up for freedom and urge Communist China to stop violating human rights, or find a new home for the 2022 Olympic Games. During the call, Anita DeFrantz would not commit to reconsider the IOC’s decision to host the 2022 Winter Olympics in Communist China, even as General Secretary Xi Jinping commits genocide against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang and restricts the human rights of Hong Kongers.

Senator Scott asked Anita DeFrantz the following questions:

• If the IOC’s mission is to promote “a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity,” how can the IOC continue to host the Olympic Games in Communist China, while their government is placing Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps?
• By hosting the 2022 games in Beijing, is the IOC complicit in these abuses?
• Are you aware that human rights abuses of China have gotten worse since the IOC hosted the 2008 games in Beijing?
• Respecting human rights doesn’t start on a specific date, it’s always important. Why then does the IOC’s new Host City Contract, which incorporates human rights principles and was finalized in January 2017, not go into effect until the 2024 Summer Olympics? Los Angeles had to sign it, but not China. Did you specifically exempt China because you know they wouldn’t qualify?
• Do you believe the IOC plays a role in promoting human rights around the world?

Senator Rick Scott said, “For nearly a year, I’ve been calling on the IOC to put human rights first, stand against the genocide of the Uyghurs and the political oppression of Hong Kongers, and refuse to reward the Communist Party of China with the 2022 Games. This is also about the safety of all athletes and attendees. I am disappointed that the IOC would not commit to moving the 2022 Games out of Communist China, but this fight is not over. The IOC has to decide whether the Olympics stands for freedom or stands with Communist China and their human rights abuses.”

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