Olympic Torch Marks Last Stop
Of International Tour in Vietnam
Associated Press
April 29, 2008 11:25 a.m.
HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam -- The Olympic torch was paraded through the streets of Vietnam's largest city to cheers from thousands of onlookers Tuesday, marking the final leg of an international tour that has been dogged by protests against China.
Many of the supporters were flag-waving Chinese citizens either working or studying in Vietnam. "Beijing! China!" they chanted as if it were a soccer match as the flame passed through downtown Ho Chi Min City. Security along the route was tight and there were no immediate signs of protesters.
Associated Press
The torch was carried through downtown Ho Chi Min City, formerly known as Saigon.
Earlier in the capital, Hanoi, police detained several people after they unfurled an anti-China banner and shouting "Boycott the Beijing Olympics" in a market, two witnesses said. They spoke on condition of anonymity, because they were afraid of getting into trouble with authorities in this communist country. Police declined comment.
Vietnam has assured its communist ally and giant northern neighbor it wouldn't allow demonstrators to disrupt the parade. Students had threatened to protest China's claim to the disputed Spratly Islands.
Scores of Western tourists along with ordinary Vietnamese, some with children on their shoulders, jostled to get a view of the torch as it was carried past famous landmarks in the city formerly known as Saigon. "I don't know about the protests in other countries, but as far as Vietnam is concerned, we are happy to welcome this torch," said Vu Thi Van, a 61-year-old lady who was carrying an Olympic flag.
BEIJING 2008
Read complete coverage of the Olympics and China's efforts to prepare for the Games, and track the torch's route.
At many of its 18 stops, the relay has been beset by protests against China's human rights record and a recent crackdown in Tibet following anti-government riots. Large groups of patriotic Chinese have also turned out, in some cases clashing with protesters.
The torch arrived in Vietnam late Monday from North Korea, where tens of thousands of citizens were mobilized to celebrate the relay in Pyongyang in the flame's first visit to the authoritarian nation. China and Vietnam fought a border war in 1979, but relations between the two communist countries have improved greatly in recent years.
From Vietnam, the flame will travel to the Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macau before heading to the mainland, including the restive Tibet region and to the top of Mount Everest, and finally to the Games themselves in Beijing in August.
On Tuesday, Students for Free Tibet spokeswoman Lhadon Tethong said that two fellow activists were detained and questioned at Hong Kong's airport and that Hong Kong officials were trying to put one of them on a return flight to New York. Hong Kong Immigration Department spokeswoman Ho Tse Bing-yee declined comment.
Copyright © 2008 Associated Press
No comments:
Post a Comment