Discussion starter - Bernard Keane in Crikey:
China’s Foreign Ministry have warned against protests in Canberra because the torch “belongs to the whole world”. That the corrupt thugs who run China (latest effort – dispatching a boatload of weapons to fellow despot Bob Mugabe) object to expressions of dissent even in other countries is no surprise. But let’s get over this fetishisation of the Olympics.
Year after year the same faces, the Kevin Gospers and John Coateses who are apparently on the Olympics gravy train for life, stand up to declare that it’s all about the sport, or world peace, or the youth of the world. In fact it’s a giant media event designed to generate massive revenue which, this time around, is being employed to promote one of the world’s most brutal regimes.
And you can see where these sports administrators come from. Just about every athlete or sports person parrots the same lines about sport having nothing to do with politics or, for that matter, morality, as if sports – professional, international sport, in all its cash-generating glory – is somehow a priori disconnected from basic ethics and standards of civilized behaviour.
For those planning to have a crack at disrupting the relay, or who just want to marvel at some wonderful security overkill, the event kicks off at 8.30am tomorrow morning.
The location? Reconciliation Place. That’s Olympian-level irony.
Elsewhere: John Quiggin.
Would it aid anything if the games were truly about invidiuals again, and country divisions were dropped for the Opening in addition to the Close?
It’s an absolute disgrace China has the Olympics anyway!
I am rather liking the contrast between the Sydney torch relay, passing through small towns and suburbs around Australia, to the Beijing relay, self-consciously parading through only “important” places around the world.
As for the Olympic apparatchiks, they got more than they bargained for with China. Indeed, even the Chinese government might find itself riding the dragon of Chinese nationalist ideology as the Games get closer.
Is the torch passing through little places when it finally does hit China?
Oh really Alison. You’d prefer the games went to a counbtry like the US perhaps which has invaded a sovereign state displaced millions and been directly responsible for the death of hundreds of thousands.
I guess so. Through all the provincial capitals, marking out the territorial integrity of the nation.
Just posted this at my blog:
What Lloyd at 5 said.
So the only country that should hold the Olympics should be without stain, without any internal division and with policies and practices with which the world agrees? Wouldn’t have happened many times, not even in Australia.
Engagement with countries works better in shifting them to more acceptable policies than isolation. China was isolated for many years. Worked well for the Tibetans eh?
Of course sport is above morality. Look at the behaviour of our footballers, on and off the field.
I have some hope the Aboriginal smoking ceremony to drive out bad spirits might work, but it probably won’t.
Must admit, I find all the nationalist/imperialist flag-wavy stuff obnoxious.
It is time to end nationalism in the Olympics. It is also time to eliminate all the problems with purportedly banned drugs and the expense and hassle of testing for them.
Athletes should compete as individuals, or form teams representing their preferred pharmaceutical companies.
no comment
I guess that’s one person whose never seen Olympia then.
I’m with Andyc here. Let them compete under the banner of their favourite pharmaaceutical company.
Leinad,
Makes one wonder what some people think Nazi Germany was nowadays, don’t it?
btw,everyone, has the thingamajig gone off peacefully in Canberra? (I’m reading a book. Can’t be bothered watching.)
I doubt very much that any country can claim to be a pure as driven snow when it comes to human rights issues. No doubt there will be protesters at the flag ceremony, no doubt also that they will all be wearing at least one piece of clothing made in China, and more likely most of their attire will be Chinese made.Many will be reading your blog on computers using Chinese components, their kids will be wearing clothes made in China, playing with toys made in China, and the list goes on and on.
What is interesting is that these people do not choose to boycott items when such an act will have a direct impact on their own hip pockets.
Much easier to loudly target someone else’s I guess.
Elsewhere: John Quiggin.
Latest news from Canberra via Tim Dunlop:
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Floyd and WPD, don’t be stupid.
Comparing China’s myriad human rights abuses with the US’s - however egregious - is a comparison that will only shame China.
Whatever your problems with the States, putting these two as some kind of ethical equivalency is specious and frankly sickens me a bit, as a monument of both your ignorance of China’s human rights abuses, and your apathy in caring about the suffering the engender.
Furthermore, why does this relativism bullshit have to come into play every time someone criticises China? It seems the only way to defend China is to try and find someone worse than them (a valiant exercise, anyway).
China’s human rights are deplorable and indefensible. Comparing to other countries doesn’t come into it. Let’s argue about the countries that are hosting the olympics, shall we?
its funny Paul Burns mentioned Nazi Germany
The relay of the flame from Greece to the site of the modern games had no ancient precedent and was introduced by Carl Diem, with the support of Joseph Goebbels, at the controversial Berlin Olympics as a means to promote Nazi ideology.
so i dont know why anyone would want to participate in the stupid thing anyway??
Canberra site RiotAct has a running commentary and links And of course there’s the much lower key Olympic Spliff Relay (and thanks to Liam for that glorious title)
The Indians got it right. They deployed 15,000 police to separate the relay from the protests. The route was drastically shortened to 3 kilometres.
It seems the Tibetan protesters were swamped by hordes of red flag waving aggressively nationalistic Chinese students (from the SMH coverage) which is emblematic of what’s happening to Tibet.
Although the event was instantly declared a success there were some incidents. It seems the police were able to contain the crowd, but not control them.
According to the route it’s four more stops then home to China and breathing easier, though June 20-21 in Tibet could be interesting.
Hopefully that will be the end of these rallies at least through other countries. Apparently we started it by sharing it with the Pacific, but Greece then opened it up to the world.
The most notable aspect of yesterday’s event was the ease with which the Chinese community mobilised some (reportedly) 10 to 15,000 Chinese students and others to bus into Canberra from Melbourne, Brisbane and Syndey on the night before the relay and to disappear just as smoothly within 24 hours.
Amazing organisation, and completely missed by the MSM, which focussed only on what the Tibetans were doing in preparing for the relay.
Hundreds of buses (as reported by truckies on the highways) did the interstate transporting overnight, and were parked all around Canberra suburbs during the relay, disappearing by the end of the day. Every Chinese demonstrator carried a red flag, thousands of which must have been issued on the buses by some central organising system, and these flags visually obliterated any other flag, Tibetan or Australian, at the relay. A sea of red flags indeed.
It was all a bit weird and scary. A Russian friend of mine said he felt like he was back in the USSR. We Canberrans certainly got to feel just a little bit Tibetan.
Yes, Grace, it had the look of a very smooth operation. It beggars belief to call it ’spontaneous’ or the result of diverse patriotic enthusiasts organising their fellows. It sent a shiver up my spine.
It would be interesting to know who paid for the buses.
This kind of organisation at demos is not unknown. What sets this particular one apart is the number that had to be organised.
One needs to be a bit cautious in our response to this - what we are seeing is Chinese nationalism, not necessarily the doings of the CCCP. Think a bit. Who organised all those Australian flags we’re all waving today, eh? Some faceless, phantom government organisation initiated by John Howard and passed on intact and secretly to Kevin Rudd. And Rudd’s kept his mouth shut about it? I don’t think so, and nor am I so hasty as to see some Communist conspiracy with the Chinese and the torch relay - just another example by the Chinese of the kind of national pride we show as Australians in our traditions on Anzac Day.
btw, if you think ASIO, the Federal Police, and various State Special Branches and other agencies don’t take photos of Australians ar demos think again.
And if you think Aussie police don’t come down hard on people here and give them a rough time, you haven’t been talking to any Muslim people recently. Or old Comms. Or, for that matter any Indigenous People.
Just sayin’.