AFP: French President refuses to rule out Olympics ceremony boycott
French President refuses to rule out Olympics ceremony boycott
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Tuesday that "all options were open" regarding a possible boycott of the Beijing Olympics' opening ceremony. "All options are open and I appeal to the Chinese leaders' sense of responsibility," Sarkozy said during a visit to the southwestern Pyrenees region. Aides to Sarkozy said France had not shut the door on a possible boycott of the August 8 Olympics opening ceremony, even though it still opposed calls to stay away from the entire games. "I want a dialogue to start and I will step up my response according to the response given by the Chinese authorities," Sarkozy said.
The media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called for a boycott of the opening ceremony to protest China's human rights record and the violence in Tibet.
