Fed: Rudd yet to decide on attending Olympics - Smith

AAP General News (Australia)
04-06-2008
Fed: Rudd yet to decide on attending Olympics - Smith

CANBERRA, April 6 AAP - Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's attendance of the Beijing Olympics
depends on his schedule and not China's human rights record, Foreign Minister Stephen
Smith says.

Neither Mr Rudd nor Mr Smith would boycott the Olympics because of the crackdown in
Tibet or other human rights concerns, the foreign minister said today.

"He's been invited, as have I. I haven't made a decision yet whether I'm able to go
and nor has he," Mr Smith told ABC TV.

"These decisions will be made on the basis of availability, they won't be made on the
basis of boycotting the Olympics because of Tibet or other human rights issues.

"It's in the international interest that China engages in the world and in some respects
there's no better example of that than the Olympics themselves."

The foreign minister said Mr Rudd would "absolutely" be comfortable raising human rights
issues when he visits China this week.

Both had already talked about the Tibet unrest with Chinese officials and urged a dialogue
between Beijing and Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

"Those points have been noticed by the Chinese authorities both here and in Beijing,"

Mr Smith said.

"They have noted the seriousness of our comments, that they need to be more open and
transparent when it comes to these matters."

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KEYWORD: OLY08 SMITH

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