( dpa )- Two Swedish cabinet members Thursday reacted coolly to a call by former justice minister Thomas Bodstrom that Swedish athletes should boycott the opening and closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.
Such a move would "send a very clear signal" to protest the ongoing violence in Tibet and other human rights violations in China, Bodstrom said on Swedish television.
International Development Cooperation Minister Gunilla Carlsson said "an effective China policy" would require a joint effort with other European Union members, and said a continuous dialogue on human rights issues was a better approach.
Culture Minister Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth, who also handles sports matters, was scheduled to take part at the opening ceremony and in parliament said Sweden maintained an open and clear dialogue with China.
Bodstrom, a former football player, who played in the late 1980s for Swedish first division club AIK, said he did not propose a boycott of the competitions. He is a member of parliament for the opposition Social Democrats.