Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has wished Chinese President Xi Jinping "every success" with the hosting of the upcoming 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, an event one of her Labour MPs previously backed calls for diplomats to boycott.
Ardern spoke with Xi on Friday, with a readout of their discussion provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade saying the pair spoke about the recovery from COVID-19, trade developments and climate change. The Prime Minister also "took the opportunity to reiterate New Zealand's concerns over developments in Xinjiang and Hong Kong".
Something missing from the readout, however, was the topic of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. It was reported earlier on Saturday in Chinese state media that Ardern said New Zealand believes the games would be a "complete success".
The Prime Minister on Saturday confirmed to New Zealand reporters she had wished China well.
"I wished every success to China in hosting, highlighted again that whilst it wasn't a general practice for ministers to attend the Winter Games, that we would be sending a team of New Zealand athletes and that we, if I recall my words, wish them every success for the successful hosting of those games. Words to that effect."
There have been calls, including from nearly 200 human rights groups, for a boycott of the event over China's treatment of the Uighur people in Xinjiang, behaviour in Hong Kong and actions in the South China Sea. Both the European Parliament and British House of Commons have supported non-binding motions saying officials and royals should skip the games.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has refused calls to take a stance, objecting to the games becoming about "politics".
Newshub reported in July that Labour MP Louisa Wall, also a co-chair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), was backing calls for a diplomatic boycott, "including advocating advice to respective citizens not to travel".
Last month, activists disrupted a torch-lighting ceremony in Athens, unfurling a banner reading "No Genocide Games", a reference to allegations that a genocide is underway in Xinjiang. Others have called the event the "Genocide Games", including the World Uyghur Congress.
There's also concern about the freedoms of journalists wanting to report on the games, with the US this week urging China to not limit their movement or access.
Politico reported last week that the US and Canada objected to a reference to the Beijing games being included in a G20 communique, something China had wanted.
When questioned over calls for a boycott, Ardern said on Saturday that while mention was made on her call with Xi about the games, "so to was the issue of the Uighur people in China and so to was the issue of Hong Kong".
She said there was "considerable discussion and canvassing of those issues on both sides" and that New Zealand has taken a "totally consistent" position on them. Ardern has raised the abuses in China on several occasions, including during her trip there in 2019.
At a press conference on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said media outlets were welcome to cover the games, but China "firmly oppose[s] politicisation of sports, oppose strong ideological bias against China, and oppose distorting and smearing China and the Beijing Winter Games with fake news and disinformation in the name of press freedom".
China has always denied abusing the Uighur people, saying camps are for vocational education and counter-terrorism activities, but testimonials suggest the Uighurs are subjected to torture, brainwashing, forced labour and sterilisation as authorities attempt to eradicate their religion and suppress birth rates.
In May, New Zealand MPs passed a motion saying they are "gravely concerned about the severe human rights abuses" in Xinjiang. That was watered down from a previous motion that included the term "genocide".
