Human rights group Amnesty International has accused China of breaking a pledge to improve its rights record when it was picked to host the Olympic games.

The group said the government’s rights record had in fact worsened, using the games as a pretext to crack down on thousands of activists as part of a campaign to “clean up” Beijing before next week’s event.

Amnesty issued a report documenting China’s rights violations on Monday and urged the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and political leaders to openly challenge Beijing on the matter.

[Source]