‘You shall not murder’: Atos at the Paralympic Games

At the London 2012 Paralympic Games a controversy arose regarding Paralympic sponsor ‘Atos’, the French IT company contracted at £400m, to implement the United Kingdom (UK) Government’s ‘Work Capability Assessment’. Atos were accused of falling short of professional codes of conduct, including declaring fit for work persons who subsequently died following removal of their benefits. The disability rights group ‘Disabled People Against Cuts’ held UK wide protests at Atos offices in Cardiff, Glasgow, Belfast and London. I argue that rather than responding positively to the protests, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is causing damage to the Disabled People’s Movement (DPM). To build the argument within a theological context the Biblical story of Cain’s slaying of his brother Abel is applied to help understand the relationship between the IPC and the DPM respectively.