Olympics: the problem of international cooperation

It is ironic, as we are ramping up to the Olympics, to read about the imprisonment of “Pussy Riot” activists for criticizing Putin, and the murder of throusands of abandoned pet dogs (abandoned when their owners were relocated to make room for the Olympic village). Similarly, we the last winter Olympics were held in China, a country which is trying to be modern but which does not believe in free speech and persecutes countless minorities. Halloween, you may recall the letter from the inmate at the Masanjia forced labor camp, punished for being a member of Falun Gong, for whom making Halloween decorations without pay was a welcome relief. And the nadir of this depravity was the 1936 summer games in Germany presided over by Hitler (admittedly, Germany was selected before Hitler came into power). The attitude is summarized by Avery Brundage’s statement that “politics have no place in sport.” The Olympics claims to exist in this idyllic sphere above it all, when of course it really is taking place in a real country.
One the one hand, relationship building is a positive thing, and there’s the idea that maybe you build a relationship first then work on the hard stuff. I have always thought interfaith gatherings should focus on bonding over tikkun olam projects rather than discussing the things that make us different-let’s become friends then work out our issues
On the other hand, abusers utilize their victims’ silence. Truly abusive countries (and people) know that ‘decency’ will prevent their victims from speaking out, so they masquerade as decent while committing atrocities behind closed doors which nobody would know about and most civilized people have a hard time believing.
Abusive people act as if they are completely civilized—they con everybody (and intimidate those who have the guts to question their charade). Think about Ariel Castro in Cleveland, who held three women as personal slaves in his basement while hosting back yard barbeques. Or Hitler, who created fake ‘model ghettos’ to show how well he was treating the Jews. These people know perfectly well that their actions are abominable, or else they wouldn’t cover them up. They know that people who suspect will remain silent; they count on it.
I am going, on Monday, to visit the Ugandan embassy. The Ugandan parliament recently passed a law expanding the rules against homosexuality, calling for life in prison for homosexuals (it is apparently, in their eyes, one of the worst crimes one could do as a human). Homosexuality is already illegal, carrying 14 year prison sentence. I am going to speak out against a government trampling on human rights, against an abusive regime. But at the Olympics, of course there will be terrific Ugandan athletes. They will be welcome in the “community of nations,” as are Russia, China, and Saudia Arabia.
There is a notion, in Judaism, that if somebody is committing a sin, we first approach them privately, but if that fails, we denounce their behavior publically, setting aside the rules of lashon hara (negative speech) because of their bad behavior. And if we were in a position to protest but didn’t, we are held responsible for their crimes as if we had committed them ourselves.
Yes, we try to build a relationship with these people. Mishnah Shevi’it says we lend a sifter to someone suspecting of using untithed produce, out of the “ways of peace”—we still behave decently, create a peaceful world through cooperation. But at the same time, we rebuke them; we don’t build a relationship on lies, on covering up the dirty truths. That would be ‘flattery,’ which technically means giving a wrongdoer the impression they aren’t doing anything wrong. We cooperate, but at the same time make it completely clear what we think of their behavior. We build relationships based not on some idyllic realm of “sport competition” which exists apart from political reality, but based on openness, honesty, and love.