Taipei, Feb. 15 (CNA) China is expected to face intensified pressure from the international community before the Beijing Olympics over its support for Sudan's government, but Taiwan so far has no plans to boycott the Games, a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said Friday.
"The Olympic Games have been given multiple meanings. As the host country, China has been under tremendous pressure, but it should not shun its obligations as a member of the international community either, " MAC Vice Chairman Liu Te-shun said in response to a question on American film director Steven Spielberg's withdrawal as an artistic adviser to the Beijing Olympics.
Spielberg made the announcement Tuesday after failing to prod China to do more to end the conflict in Darfur in western Sudan that has left hundreds of thousands dead and displaced more than 2 million people.
Before Spielberg withdrew, a number of celebrities, international media watchdogs and human rights organizations had been calling for a boycott of the 2008 Olympics because of China's support for the Sudanese government, which has been blamed for most of the atrocities in the conflict and used Chinese-made weapons against its enemies.
Asked if Taiwan would consider boycotting the event, Liu said that "there have been no substantial discussions on that matter from our side."
China has been engaging in an intense competition for energy and mineral products as part of its "peaceful rise, " which was why it had to develop close diplomatic relations with a number of authoritarian regimes, Liu said.
The United Nations and other international organizations are trying to pressure China and ask it to play a more positive and responsible role in handling the Darfur situation and domestic human rights protection, Liu said.
"If China wants to assure the international community about its peaceful rise, it should not merely sit by and watch -- or shield -- the injustice in front of its face. For the international community, that would be ironic and reveal China's anti-democratic attitude and lack of respect for human rights, " he said.