Nicole Fontaine, a French conservative, said in a statement she "deeply regrets" the decision of the International Olympic Committee to award the 2008 games to Beijing.
"I respect the choice of the IOC but I regret it deeply," Fontaine's statement said. "I strongly doubt that the Beijing authorities will soften their policies."
Fontaine recalled that the European Parliament recently passed a resolution urging a different venue for the 2008 Games because of China's human rights record, in particular concerning the plight of ethnic minorities there.
"2008 is far off and I hope that on the eve of those Games democratic countries will ask themselves whether they should take part if the human rights situation remains unchanged. Today the Olympic spirit does not prevail in China," she said.
Earlier this week, EU Commissioner for External Affairs Chris Patten - who as Britain's last colonial governor in Hong Kong often clashed with Beijing - also urged China to relax curbs on free speech if it clinched the Games.
"I would find it inconceivable that a country hosting the Olympics would prevent both its citizens and its visitors from having access to the news on the Internet about the Games themselves," Patten said, adding that during a recent visit to China he had found both the BBC and CNN websites inaccessible.
Patten said the 15-nation European Union would continue to press human rights' issues during its ongoing political dialogue with China, including Beijing's "excessive use" of the death penalty and its treatment of dissidents and Tibetans.
Europeans have been generally guarded in their comments on Friday's IOC decision, but French President Jacques Chirac said on Saturday he hoped it would encourage China to "progress towards real democracy and a real respect for the individual".
Reuters
Democratic countries should consider boycotting the 2008 Olympic Games if China fails to show improvements on human rights, the president of the European Parliament has stated.
