– This is not a gray area. It is direct discrimination only on the basis of nationality, says Alexandra Xanthaki to news. Xanthaki is a law professor in human rights at Brunel University in London and special rapporteur for cultural rights at the UN. Last autumn, as one of two independent UN experts, she sent a notice to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). They believed that the IOC violated human rights. Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen, head of Norway’s athletes’ committee and IOC member, expressed that the demand for non-discrimination is inevitable in a controversial meeting, which ignited the debate in Norway. Now the UN letter is being used as an argument to lift the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes. When Xanthaki speaks about the matter, she is crystal clear: – Mixing governments with individuals is a very, very bad idea, says Xanthaki, who emphasizes that she condemns Russia’s illegal warfare in Ukraine. SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR: Alexandra Xanthaki. Law professor at the University of Oslo, Trond Solvang, who strongly disagrees with several of the views put forward. He has expertise in sports law and accuses Xanthaki of making an argument that is far from reality. – We must be nuanced – Many of them have positions in the Russian army. Can it then be separated from being connected to the state? asks news. – Yes, you can. Firstly, there are many athletes from many countries who are part of the army. There are many states that, through their bodies, have violated human rights. Should we exclude them? We have not done that, says Xanthaki. She calls the performers cultural actors and believes we must distinguish between them and the state. – If these people who are obligated to go to war are asked to go to war, but don’t go to go to war, then they will face consequences, won’t they? It is not through free will that they want to go to war. We must be nuanced and we must retain proportionality. Good performance in the Olympics is rewarded with military promotion. A few weeks after the invasion, several activists attended a celebration of the illegal Krym annexation. They have also been celebrated in the Kremlin. BANNED: Aleksej Chervotkin, Mark Kondratyuk, Nikita Katsalapov, Kamila Valieva, Viktorija Sinitsina, Vladimir Putin, Anastasija Misjina, Veronika Stepanova, Denis Spitsov and Aleksandr Galljamov are – so far – not cleared for future Olympic participation. Here they are during a ceremony in the Kremlin from the end of April. Photo: SPUTNIK / Reuters The UN special rapporteur believes that these are not good arguments for exclusion. She believes it goes against an important principle: the ban on direct discrimination. – They live in an illusion The argument amazes Solvang. He believes that it must be assumed that the military is loyal to their country’s military policy. – They live in an illusion that their view should have no political effect – the IOC of course understands this. They have condemned Russia’s acts of war, and they have sanctioned Russian government officials. Individuals cannot easily be detached from their national role. Xanthaki points out that this is precisely what international human rights are supposed to do, namely to separate individuals from states. She emphasizes that she hopes her views have a political impact. The UN expert: – Where should we draw the line? The IOC wrote in its statement that the participants from Russia and Belarus would not be allowed to participate unless they met various requirements. The UN experts believe it is a bad idea. She questions where the line should be drawn and refers to the fact that several nations violate human rights. – It is direct discrimination solely on the basis of nationality. Nothing else, says Xanthaki in a clear voice. Solvang calls the views extreme. He is acutely aware that the assessments are not black and white and thinks she is playing herself beyond the sidelines. The IOC has already made it clear that neutrality criteria must be introduced. – Thus they realize that such simplistic thinking from a human rights perspective cannot be realized, says Solvang. NORWEGIAN PROFESSOR: Trond Solvang. Solvang: – Lack of reality During the last 15 years, Russia has broken the Olympic peace on three occasions. Xanthaki is nevertheless clear that it can only be sanctioned against the state. – By excluding these performers and cultural actors, you attack individuals from a country that already attacks their human rights: – How does this help the Ukrainians? How does this help the future respect for human rights and the reduction of illegal wars? Solvang is baffled by the UN expert’s rhetorical counter-questions. He points out that the basic idea is to prevent the use of national sports heroes for national propaganda purposes. – If this expert believes that such thinking, represented by the IOC and international sports until now, has nothing to do with it, it is indeed sensational, and highlights her lack of reality, and that she is precisely acting politically by expressing herself in this way, says Solvang. The statement causes the UN expert to fire back: – It is remarkable that the concept and purpose of international human rights has been completely bypassed here, especially in a liberal democracy! Condemned by Ukraine Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyj, has condemned a possible Russian return. He has received support from the Baltic states, the Nordic countries and Poland. At the same time, the White House and the US Olympic Committee have stood behind the IOC. – Everyone in the world is shocked by what is happening in Ukraine. I understand why they are against this decision, but international or national decisions are not made on the basis of the victim’s feelings, says Alexandra Xanthaki – and gives an example: – We do not ask the mother of a murdered child about the fate of the murderer. In the same way, even if we are against murder, we must be sensitive about Ukraine, says Xanthaki.
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