Free Speech and Olympic Protests

Philip Hersch has an excellent article in the Chicago Tribune, aptly entitled Rules on Olympians' Criticism of Chinese Policy Confuse, that discusses the dilemma posed by speech restrictions at this year's Olympic games in China. Rule 15 (3) of the Olympic Charter says that "No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues, or other areas." But officials in Britain, Belgium and New Zealand have all considered restricting the types of speech athletes can engage in outside of official Olympic venues. Human rights advocates had hoped the games would be an opportunity to draw attention to China's troubling record on human rights, and find such restrictions particularly troubling this year since the IOC selected Beijing as the host city in hopes of encouraging positive change in China.

-Kathleen A. Bergin




http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/firstamendment/2008/02/free-speech-and.html