Olympic Torch Protest

Olympic Torch Protest

The opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Torch Relay was interrupted by protesters on March 24, 2008. A man rushed the podium as China's Olympic Chief Liu Qi was speaking and unfurled a flag bearing the Olympic rings rendered as handcuffs.

French human rights activists Reporters Without Borders claimed responsibility for the protest saying, "We cannot let the Chinese government seize the Olympic flame, a symbol of peace, without denouncing the dramatic situation of human rights in the country."

Protests against the 2008 Olympics have targeted a wide range of issues, mostly related to Censorship in China, Human Rights Abuses, Tibetan Independence, and China's Role in Darfur.

Fast Facts

China Olympic Committee Chief: Liu Qi
Reporters Without Borders Secretary General: Robert Menard
China state TV cut away from the protest and showed a prerecorded scene
Reporters Without Borders seeks to protect journalists around the world
The most controversial leg of the torch relay is planned for June, when it is scheduled to be carried through Tibet and three neighboring provinces

Categories

Politics | Beijing Olympics

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Also try: Olympic Torch Relay 2008 | China Olympics Protests

Olympic Torch Protest News, Blogs and Information

ESPN.com Video: Olympic Torch Extinguished in Paris Amid Protest (Time 3:27)
Official Site: Beijing 2008 Olympic Games
Official Site: Reporters Without Borders - Beijing 2008
Reporters Without Borders: Reporters Without Borders demonstrates in Olympia (March 24, 2008)
CNN: Protest as Olympic torch is lit (March 24, 2008)
- A protester managed to breach the tight security during the Olympic torch lighting ceremony in Greece Monday. The man rushed behind the podium as China's Olympic chief was speaking. He unfurled a banner, but was quickly apprehended by security who escorted him away.
Daily Mail: Olympic torch lit - but Tibet protesters disrupt ceremony (March 24, 2008)
- ...the relay was interrupted minutes after the ceremony began as three demonstrators from Paris-based Reporters Without Borders breached security during the speech of the Beijing Games organising chief Liu Qi in the ancient stadium of Olympia. One demonstrator - bearing a flag with the Olympic rings depicted as interlocking handcuffs...
Google News: Olympic Torch Protest Search
Topix: Olympic Torch Protest Search

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Related Pages on Mahalo

Olympic Torch Relay 2008 | China Olympics Protests | 2008 Olympics | China Censorship | China Human Rights | China-Sudan Relations | Free Tibet