Greek court postponed trial to avoid embarrassing China, says activist

By Choekyi Lhamo

DHARAMSHALA, Feb. 8: The trial of the three activists who interrupted the live torch-lighting ceremony in Greece in October has been postponed until the end of this year. The trial was due to be held on Thursday, a day prior to the opening ceremony of the Olympics, but human rights lawyers and activists accused the Greek court of trying to ‘avoid embarrassing China’ on the eve of the Winter Games.

The three activists unfurled a Tibetan flag and ‘No Genocide Games’ banner to oppose the International Olympics Committee’s complicity in human rights violations by letting China host the Winter Olympics. Tibetan-Canadian activist Chemi Lhamo, British activist Jason Leith from Free Tibet and American activist Fern MacDougal were pinned down by security officials after they interrupted the ceremony with slogans in Olympia. The trio are facing charges of attempting to “pollute, damage, and distort” a historical monument, a charge punishable up to five years imprisonment under Greek law.

“The real destruction of historical monuments happens throughout Tibet & East Turkistan every day. Just weeks ago, a 99-foot Buddha statue, 45 prayer wheels, and even a monastic school were violently demolished by the Chinese government in Drago, Tibet. Students were expelled, local community members were detained and tortured for simply sharing information. That is the true crime, and yet the world stays quiet,” activist Chime Lhamo wrote on her Instagram days before the scheduled trial.

The lawyers representing the defendants have raised doubt over the delay as Michael Polak from the group Justice Abroad told The Guardian, “Our pleas to the court for the case to be heard fell on deaf ears . . . They pushed it into the long grass so as not to have to deliver a decision before the Beijing Olympics.” The barristers involved in the case have stated clearly that the court could have prioritized the case, given its sensitivity of accusations and the timing of Olympics, but chose not to do so.

Two student activists, Tibetan-American Tsela Zoksang and Hong Kongese-American Joey Siu, were also arrested on October 17 in Athens for unfurling a Tibetan flag and pro-democracy flag in support of Tibet and Hong Kong in Acropolis. The duo’s trial was also supposed to take place last week, but it had to be postponed after a snowstorm forced the closure of courts and other public sector offices. All the participating activists had called for a total boycott of the Beijing Olympics, citing the Chinese regime’s ongoing ‘crimes against humanity’ in East Turkestan, cultural repression of Tibetans and political crackdown in Hong Kong.