The Olympic Saga of Chinese Shame Continues . . . . Rattled, Chinese
make Olympic security a priority/IHT
International Herald Tribune
Rattled, Chinese make Olympic security a priority
By Howard W. French
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
SHANGHAI: The Chinese president, Hu Jintao, has ordered his nation's
security forces to place a top priority on the Olympics in August,
saying that the country's international reputation was at stake.
The comments came against a backdrop of increasing Chinese accusations
that Tibetans were planning violent attacks in their quest for increased
autonomy, which the Tibetans deny.
"Security must take priority," Hu was quoted as saying in the People's
Armed Police News, published by China's paramilitary police force.
"Without security guarantees there cannot be a successful Olympic Games,
and without security guarantees the national image will be lost."
In one of the latest accusations, a spokesman for the Public Security
Bureau, Wu Heping, said Tuesday: "To our knowledge, the next plan of the
Tibetan independence forces is to organize suicide squads to launch
violent attacks. They claimed that they fear neither bloodshed nor
sacrifice."
A senior official in the Tibetan government in exile in Dharamsala,
India, immediately denied the Chinese accusations.
"Tibetan exiles are 100 percent committed to nonviolence," said the
official, Prime Minister Samdhong Rinpoche. "But we fear that Chinese
might masquerade as Tibetans and plan such attacks to give bad publicity
to Tibetans."
The escalation in accusations follows the wave of sometimes violent
protests against Chinese rule that swept Tibet and other areas of
western China in recent weeks. The Chinese government cracked down on
Tibetans and suppressed the protests, describing them as part of a
secessionist bid led by what China calls the "Dalai clique."
The People's Armed Police News said that a "political mobilization
order" had gone out to security forces telling them to prepare for an
arduous time ensuring order and control before and during the Games.
"The drums of war are sounding, a decisive battle is at hand," the
newspaper said. "For the sake of the Chinese nation's image and for the
honor of the People's Armed Police, let us never forget our duty."
Recent indications suggest China's war of words against the Dalai Lama,
denouncing him in increasingly shrill terms as a separatist and
terrorist, has increased international sup****t for him.
On Tuesday, the French foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, said that the
Dalai Lama could be invited "shortly" to Brussels to meet with European
Union foreign ministers.
Notes:
International Herald Tribune Copyright (c) 2008 The International Herald
Tribune | www.iht.com
|
