Sudestasiatico.com

Patriotic crowds greet Olympic torch in Hong KongFrom Hong Kong News.NetFlag-waving patriotic crowds turned out in heavy rain to greet the Olympic torch in Hong Kong Friday as a student brandishing a Tibetan flag was whisked away by police.Christina Chan, 21, was heckled by pro-China crowds near the start of the relay route and taken away by police who said it was for her own protection after she wrapped the Tibetan flag around her body.The mood of the Hong Kong crowd, which greeted the torch on its first appearance back on Chinese soil after its troubled round-the-world tour, was overwhelmingly pro-China.Hundreds of people lined the streets from the bustling Tsim Sha Tsui shopping district from early morning despite persistent rain to see the torch carried on its 33 km route starting at 10 a.m. (02.00 GMT).Small groups of protestors, exercising the right to demonstrate denied to people in almost every other part of China, were drowned out by cheering crowds holding Hong Kong and Chinese flags.A campaign by pro-Beijing groups in the past fortnight has seen flags, badges and free T-shirts handed out to people across the city to welcome the Olympic torch.The first torchbearer was windsurfing Olympic gold medallist Lee Lai-Shan, who was handed the torch by Hong Kong’s Beijing-appointed chief executive, Donald Tsang.Tsang described the relay - which had been dogged by anti-China protests in London, Paris and other capitals - as ‘a trail of unity and peace, for all people, of all nations’.'It is a great and solemn honour for Hong Kong, Asia’s world city, to be the first city in China to welcome back the Olympic flame on behalf of our proud nation,’ he said.Hong Kong immigration officials have turned away a number of overseas protesters flying into the city in the past week to join in anti-China demonstrations.However, despite speculation she would be refused entry, activist and actress Mia Farrow, a high-profile critic of China’s policy in Sudan, is being allowed to give a speech on the issue later Friday.

Torch cheered through Hong KongFromBBC Thousands of people have turned out in Hong Kong to watch the Olympic torch parade through the streets.Many people waved Chinese flags and cheered, significantly outnumbering small groups of protesters holding pro-Tibet or pro-democracy placards.About 3,000 police are on duty for the eight-hour parade, the first stop on the torch’s journey through China.Ahead of the relay, the authorities denied access to several activists intending to protest.Freedom of speech is protected in the territory by the Basic Law - the mini-constitution agreed before the end of British rule in 1997.That, says the BBC’s Vaudine England, has put Hong Kong officials in a bind: they are required to allow for protests, yet are also under a heavy obligation to Beijing to ensure a smooth event.Demonstrations over China’s human rights record have dogged international legs of the relay - sparking anger in China and galvanising popular support for the Beijing Olympics.Red prideHong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang kicked off the relay at a ceremony by the harbour.”We are a world in a city, where different people with different beliefs and different views have thrived in a spirit of diversity, tolerance and respect,” he said. The torch would blaze “a trail of unity and peace” as it passed through China in the coming months, he said.Thousands of Hong Kong citizens and visitors from the mainland started lining the relay route on Friday morning, as a light rain fell.People were being encouraged to wear red to show their support for the torch and for China.Fu Qiang, a mainland student from Xi’an, held a banner calling on China to unite and support the president, Hu Jintao. “I am here because I think politics should be kept out of sport,” the 19-year-old said.But 20-year-old Lo Waiyin, a Hong Kong student, was harangued by pro-China supporters for bringing a banner that read “Promote Freedom of Speech”.”They say I shouldn’t be protesting because I am being disrespectful to China,” he said.There were some reports of confrontations and scuffles between pro-China supporters and protesters, but the early stages of the relay appeared to have passed off smoothly.After Hong Kong, the torch will go to Macau and then begin its journey through more than 100 towns and cities in China on its way to the Olympic stadium in Beijing.Protesters see the parade in Hong Kong as the last chance to put pressure on China over its human rights record. But in the last few days, at least seven activists have been denied entry to Hong Kong, prompting protests from western diplomats.Three members of the Students for a Free Tibet campaign told journalists they had been put on a flight from Hong Kong earlier this week.Actress and campaigner Mia Farrow was allowed in, however. She is due to give a speech critical of China’s ties with Sudan later today.