This house would boycott the Sochi Olympics - closing speeches

Third proposing speech
Ladies and gentlemen, both great ideas and nonsense have been said in this debate. Please allow me to clarify our point of view and explain you why most of the arguments used by the opposition are misleading, at the very least. ET said that Russia wanted to show that they are able to organize the Olympics. Indeed they did succeed, but at what cost ? Do we not need to prevent this from happening again ? (Continues below.)
By GM

Third opposing speech

Honorable judges, fellow members of the opposing team, dearest members of the government, we have already won this debate and I will demonstrate this in my speech. (Continues below.)
By GG

Third proposing speech

Ladies and gentlemen, both great ideas and nonsense have been said in this debate. Please allow me to clarify our point of view and explain you why most of the arguments used by the opposition are misleading, at the very least. ET said that Russia wanted to show that they are able to organize the Olympics. Indeed they did succeed, but at what cost ? Do we not need to prevent this from happening again ?

First, let's take some hindsight on what ET wrote about the impact a boycott would have on the athletes. Of course they would be disappointed not to be able to go, but there are plenty of other competitions. They don't "train for four years for this event" as ET claimed. Of course it is the one that offers them the most visibility, but as QM explained, it seems logical to put aside that desire to compete for once in order to convey a really important message. Most of the athletes would understand and voluntarily do so. Concerning their freedom, everybody shall be reassured; it is not a matter of freedom here. When you are in a team, you either abide by the rules, or you find another one. In this case, they still have the possibility to compete as an independent, under the Olympic flag. Moreover we find it quite surprising that you bring up freedom and democracy in this debate, as it is precisely what we are trying to help ensure in Russia with our motion.

Another fallacious argument we read is that we should go to Sochi because the problems we mentioned are none of our business, as they would be Russia's internal affairs. The latter statement is absolutely wrong. When they ruin the environment by stacking huge piles of waste in the forest, which pollute the river just a couple kilometres away from the sea, we believe it is everybody's business. When they exploit insecure workers to build the infrastructures to the detriment of the human rights, we believe it is everybody's duty to react. We have to make an example of these games, so that from now on no organizing country would ever repeat this massacre.

There are other occasions to share the occidental point of view on gay rights as ET suggested. The Olympics are above all a showcase to the world. For the time being we think the priority is to show that we do not support the way they handled the organisation of the games as well as part of the policy they are conducting. Russians are not as stubborn as the opposition would like you to believe. If numerous countries boycott the games, they will definitely end up questioning the government's dogmas. With all due respect to JD, the situation has absolutely nothing to do with the manif pour tous or Dieudonné. We are indeed speaking of institutionalized discrimination, destruction of the environment, and not of an independent group of people expressing their thoughts, disputable as they may be.

We hope that you are now convinced that a boycott of the games is a necessary move to help Russia move forward socially. We would find it absolutely inconceivable that Putin's policy be accepted or even ignored by the rest of the world, thus supporting his abuses to Human Rights and his assaults to the environment. That would give a crystal-clear thumbs-up to other countries taking the same path, the most obvious right now being Qatar.

Thank you for reading and please vote for us.

GM

Third opposing speech

Honorable judges, fellow members of the opposing team, dearest members of the government, we have already won this debate and I will demonstrate this in my speech.

We both side seemed to agree that freedom is one major value that we respect and want to promote. Yes, the situation isn’t perfect in Russia, far from it, but as we said, the proposing side seems to have forgotten…the athletes’ one! How easy to say: “let’s not go there” when you haven’t been training everyday for 4 years with the single purpose of performing at the Sochi Olympics. Athletes should have the right to boycott the games if they think that it is an efficient way to warn Putin against his excesses (which it is not) but one shouldn’t impose an ideology to them, which brings me to the second point of the debate.

The link between the Olympics and political ideology seems to have been misunderstood by our opponents, which is quite embarrassing for them as this is a key notion of the Olympics’ spirit. By clumsily quoting the example of Ancient Greece, they showed our point, which is that we could qualify the Olympics a “pause” in the conflict between ideologies. Despite what they say about the common values between Greek cities, I can hardly find one between the Athenian democracy and the military autocracy in Sparta!

Our opponents also quoted the mutual boycotts of Olympics by the US and the USSR. I would have quoted this too, because they precisely show how the spirit of a boycott can be ideology-driven and disrespectful of another spirit, the Olympics one. I will also respond to this quote by quoting other Olympic Games, surprisingly-well, maybe not-ignored by the other side: the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The same questions had be risen at the time and the idea of a boycott had gained supporters. But it didn’t happen, and beside the fact that you can’t refuse a chance to Russia after giving one to China, which isn’t a perfect regime concerning human rights, it is commonly admitted now that these games were a success and a part of China’s long way to democracy. This was the next question we evoked: Russia’s progresses.

Yes, these anti-gay propaganda law Is unacceptable and contrary to our beliefs. But first these questions have to be dealt in institutions meant for this: the UN for instance! And second, Russia is undergoing since 1989 a time of deep mutations, and a search for identity. In such a tough period, the way to go to achieve a democratic regime is still long, but as we have shown, even in the domain of gay people’s rights, and despite this highly questionable law, that Russia is globally moving towards the right direction. Showing despise to the Russian people by boycotting these Olympics, which are not only Putin’s Games, but also Russia’s Games, will create resentment and frustration against Western countries.

Our opponents have finally managed to completely discredit their position by talking about the Games’ preparation. Apparently, freeing political opponents and spending much money to make these Olympics a success is something that shouldn’t had been done. Oh let’s not be naïve, Putin has second thought when he does that. But what great gestures in history didn’t? If you think that France only supported the Libyan Revolution only because of its ideals of freedom and democracy, the I call you the naïve ones.

It seems to me that after reading this debate, one shouldn’t be still considering boycotting the Sochi Olympics. Thank you for reading my team and I and vote for us!

GG