Wednesday, April 09, 2008
The photo caption reads as follows: A man carrying a Tibetan flag is attacked by pro-China supporters awaiting the start of the Olympic torch relay in San Francisco. (Photograph: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty)Off to a great start already, and the relay doesn't start for another two hours. No doubt narcissistic torch relay runners like Helen Zia and Jill Slavery will find some way to rationalize it. After all, the man got what he deserved by violating the rule that the Olympics, and all the events surrounding it, are not supposed to be politicized, or rather, they are only to be politicized by the host country seeking to burnish an atrocious human rights and labor rights record.
And, when the torch relay goes through Tibet?
It appears that China has completely wrested control of the 2008 Olympics away from the International Olympic Committee. One can only hope that it continues to conduct itself in such a ham handed way so as to permanently destroy the credibility of the event.In China, government officials warned against attempts to disrupt the torch as it travels through Tibet on the most controversial leg of the tour.
"If someone dares to sabotage the torch relay in Tibet and its scaling of Mount Everest, we will seriously punish him and will not be soft-handed," said Qiangba Puncog, governor of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, at a press conference in Beijing.
Labels: Activism, China, Neoliberalism, Olympics, Political Violence, Tibet
