Olympic Committee Urged to Ensure Human Rights Protection in India

Olympic Committee Urged to Ensure Human Rights Protection in India

By RMN News Service

As the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is going to hold its 140th annual session from October 15 to 17 in Mumbai, India, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has advised IOC to first get human rights violations stopped in India. 

The authoritarian government of prime minister (PM) Narendra Modi is expected to announce its bid to host the 2036 Summer Olympic Games in the western state of Gujarat. 

However, HRW raises concerns over attacks on media freedom and lack of protections for Indian athletes. For nearly a decade, according to HRW, Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have adopted abusive laws and policies that systematically discriminate against religious minorities, particularly Muslims. 

HRW adds that the Modi regime is also suppressing opposition voices by targeting activists, protesters, and journalists with intimidation, threats, and politically motivated criminal cases.

In May 2023, according to HRW, the Sport & Rights Alliance and the IOC itself condemned Indian authorities’ treatment of female athletes during a protest in Delhi against outgoing Wrestling Federation of India president and BJP member of parliament Brij Bhushan Singh. 

[ Also Read: UN Human Rights Petition to Get Justice for Women Wrestlers of India ]

Security forces tackled and forcibly detained women wrestlers, including Olympic medallists, as they demanded justice and safety for female athletes who filed police complaints of sexual abuse spanning a decade against Singh. Initially, the authorities appeared to shield Singh, but an investigation into the complaints is now ongoing.

While a weak court case is under way against Singh, he is not expected to be arrested or jailed – as demanded by the women wrestlers. The Delhi Police – which is perhaps the most brutal and untrained police force in India – has virtually exonerated Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh who was accused of sexual harassment by women wrestlers including a minor.

With the Modi government’s Olympics bid, HRW says that the IOC has a key opportunity to press for human rights reforms and justice for affected Indian athletes. “If governments want the prestige that goes along with hosting sports’ biggest event, the IOC needs to ensure that all future hosts do human rights due diligence and remedy rights abuses in their country, including stopping the abuse of athletes and the targeting of journalists,” HRW said.