lord_casek Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 ordering our cops around.... Top Chinese Cops Protect Olympic Flame By ANITA CHANG – 15 hours ago BEIJING (AP) — They wear bright blue tracksuits and Beijing Olympic organizers call them "flame attendants." But a military bearing hints at their true pedigree: paramilitary police sent by Beijing to guard the Olympic flame during its journey around the world. Torchbearers have criticized the security detail for aggressive behavior, and a top London Olympics official simply called them "thugs." "They were barking orders at me, like 'Run! Stop! This! That!' and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, who are these people?'" former television host Konnie Huq told British Broadcasting Corp. radio about her encounter with the men in blue during London's leg of the relay Sunday. So far, the "29th Olympic Games Torch Relay Flame Protection Unit" — as the squad is officially known — has kept the flame from being seized during chaotic, protest-filled runs through Paris and London. Its mettle is likely to be further tested Wednesday in San Francisco, where activists protesting China's crackdown in Tibet and its human rights record have promised widespread demonstrations. Officially, Beijing has said only that the unit's mission was to guard the flame, in keeping with practices of past Olympic games. Members were picked from special police units of the People's Armed Police, China's internal security force. The requirements for the job: to be "tall, handsome, mighty, in exceptional physical condition similar to that of professional athletes," the state-run China News Service said. Special police units are the top tier of the paramilitary corps, chosen for skills in martial arts, marksmanship and hand-to-hand combat, according to sinodefence.com, a British-based Web site specializing in Chinese military affairs. The training for the Olympic flame detail included daily mountain runs of at least six miles and lessons in protocol. They also learned basic commands such as "go," "step back," "speed up" and "slow down" in English, French, German, Spanish and Japanese, the China News Service said. But as the torch made a stormy procession through London and Paris, the military training rather than the protocol seemed to come to the fore. At least one torchbearer said she clashed with the squad, and others have criticized their heavy-handed tactics. Yolaine De La Bigne, a French environmental journalist who was a torchbearer in Paris, told The Associated Press she tried to wear a headband with a Tibetan flag, but the Chinese agents ripped it away from her. "It was seen and then, after four seconds, all the Chinese security pounced on me. There were at least five or six (of them). They started to get angry" and shouted "No! No! No!" in English, she said. De La Bigne tried to push several agents away as they grabbed her arm. She said two French athletes who are martial arts experts tried to help her and clashed briefly with the security detail. The chairman of the London 2012 Games, Sebastian Coe, was even more blunt. "They tried to push me out of the way three times. They are horrible. They did not speak English. They were thugs," Coe, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was quoted as saying in British media. A spokeswoman for the London 2012 Olympics committee confirmed that Coe was quoted accurately, but added that he thought he was making private comments. The Olympic flame wasn't part of the ancient games, and the torch relay didn't become a fixture in the modern Olympics until the 1936 Berlin Games, when it was part of the Nazi pageantry that promoted Hitler's beliefs of Aryan supremacy in the world of sports. That first 12-day relay from Ancient Olympia to Berlin traversed Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and other nations that would later be invaded by the Nazis. And the torch was borne into the Olympic stadium by a blond, blue-eyed runner chosen for his Aryan features. In years since, security details have been sent out by Olympic hosts to accompany the torch, but until now, they never faced such protests. For the Sydney games in 2000, at least one uniformed guard followed the torch, and more security was added after the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. Security officials escorted the flame throughout the 2004 relay for the Athens games, though in small numbers and amid a festive atmosphere. For Beijing's relay, protesters disrupted the ceremony at Ancient Olympia when the Olympic flame was lit two weeks ago. In London, protesters nearly grabbed the torch, and in Paris, the men in blue extinguished its flame and hustled it to the safety of nearby buses, amid rowdy protests that prompted officials to call off the last third of the relay. In China, paramilitary police are responsible for a wide range of security tasks from fighting forest fires to quelling civil unrest. After deadly riots and protests broke out in Tibet last month, detachments mobilized to reassert government control. The Olympics squad is composed of two groups: 30 members covering the torch route outside China, and 40 handling the relay inside China, according to China News Service. The guards work around-the-clock shifts to ensure the Olympic flame never goes out. News photos showed them on an Air China charter jet staring at two lanterns containing the flame. In London, the guards stopped a protester from wrenching the torch from the hands of Huq, the former TV host, but she was unsure who they were and what their role was. "The men in blue perplexed everyone," she said. "Nobody actually seemed to know who they were officially or what their title was. They were kind of very robotic, very full on." Officials with the Beijing Olympic organizing committee and the government had only praise for the flame attendants. "I think our protection team members have been following regulations and properly carrying out their flame protection work," said an official in the Olympic torch relay center in Beijing, who gave only his surname, Liu, because he is not an official spokesman. Zhao Shangsen, a spokesman at the Chinese Embassy in London, said it is "routine practice" for flame attendants to accompany the torch as it travels around the world. "Their job is to protect the torch," he said. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jHpaflNEZpBBT4fArcZK_OGCxV8QD8VU4DJ80 http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/node/8610 "The agents are described as "employees of the Beijing Organizing Committee," which founded a "flame protection squad" in August 2007. [...] According to Chinese media, the agents are members of the paramilitary People's Armed Police, which in China is responsible for fighting unrest and maintaining internal stability. Tens of thousands of the "Wujing," as the People's Armed Police are called in Chinese, recently took part in crackdowns against demonstrators in Tibet and neighboring regions. "These men, chosen from around the country, are each tall and large and are eminently talented and powerful," the squad's leader Zhao Si was quoted as saying. "Their outstanding physical quality is not in the slightest inferior to that of specialized athletes." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shai Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 Surprised? I'm not. Nothing against the Chinese people, but their government is shady. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thinksmall Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 This will result in the same demonization done to the Mideastern peoples, towards the Asians. Am i the only one who realizes that this is a scare tactic, public relation bowl of dog doodoo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pistol Posted April 9, 2008 Share Posted April 9, 2008 the french chick trying to rock a tibet headband then getting gaffled by yao ming. I would have waited till i knew cameras were rolling so they'd have to beat me down on film for all of youtube to see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BELTOLEUM Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 FUCK THE CHINESE PEOPLE!!! there is something extremly wrong with that country. China sells guns to the people who are killing all the tribes in Darfur...thats really fucked up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thinksmall Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 oil interest? iraq. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stereotype V.0002 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 This will result in the same demonization done to the Mideastern peoples, towards the Asians. Am i the only one who realizes that this is a scare tactic, public relation bowl of dog doodoo? I wanted to let you know I've been following your posts, and I appreciate your efforts for keeping me entertained. You are han chinese right? What generation? I bet you live in vancouver too.... You motherfuckers are like robots, every public forum I look at in the past month that has any vague mention of china, the olympics, and the tibet crackdown, you guys spam the board with the exact same text and the exact same images of cnn misidentifying nepalese policemen. Do you guys have secret meetings and shit to plan it all out? A secret handshake? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thinksmall Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 um. okay? i don't get your point but i can see how it may appears chauvinistic (very much, actually). and i did not know of those other public forums and what occurs there. the images is much more than 'misidentifying'. it shows either a. [ certain media outlets have no idea what is really going on ] or b. [ certain media outlets are commiting teh liesz ]. anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stereotype V.0002 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Well I don't really have a point, i just think its funny everywhere I look on the internet the exact same photos and similar text has popped up within the past month.....and of all the things china does in tibet that is widely known and being harped on right now, the focus is on cnn and other western news agencies mislabeling some photos? The notion that the dalai lama is some sort of CIA agent terrorist mastermind spreading death and destruction from his secret lair deep inside a volcanoe, and buddhists are really a ultra violent crazed cult bent on destroying the defenseless chinese govt, is also pretty funny. Anyway, keep on spreading the good word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lord_casek Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 well, the dalai lama did take cia money..... but that's not what the thread is about, it's about foreign troops on our soil ordering our police around. that is called treason. it is illegal, unconstitutional, and i would urge the people of the country to make sure that shit doesn't happen again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WORDISM45 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 FUCK THE CHINESE PEOPLE!!! there is something extremly wrong with that country. China sells guns to the people who are killing all the tribes in Darfur...thats really fucked up. HA, I hope you are not American and criticizing them for this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lord_casek Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 HA, I hope you are not American and criticizing them for this! they also drown babies, roll around in mobile death vans, and do on the spot organ harvesting.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WORDISM45 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 yeah don't get me wrong i don;t think the Chinese government is some great benevolent organisation but you know the whole mote in thy brothers eye thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lord_casek Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 yeah don't get me wrong i don;t think the Chinese government is some great benevolent organisation but you know the whole mote in thy brothers eye thing yeah, i got what you were saying. america is no shining beacon of goodness. but china has one upped us (so far) with the shit they do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christo-f Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 This will result in the same demonization done to the Mideastern peoples, towards the Asians. Am i the only one who realizes that this is a scare tactic, public relation bowl of dog doodoo? Now, don't get me wrong, I love China, it's where I choose to live. But I also like honesty and don't suck down plate loads full of bullshit. How many other countries in history have ever had this much trouble just getting the flame to the games? Why do you think this is? China seems to enjoy blaming everyone else. Why? Because it is part of Chinese culture to never accept responsibilities for mistakes. No one here likes to say "Whoops, I made a mistake, please forgive me", let alone a government that is so riven by corruption, incompetence, lack of accountability and lack of control over its periphery. Since the fall of the ever fated communism China has lacked an ideology to aggregate its masses, therefore it falls back on the crutch of fools, the imagined community; nationalism. Don't get me wrong, Beijing does some wonderful things and has improved the lives of millions quicker than any other country in history and the last thing China needs right now is democracy. However, the party knows how inept it is (if it truly believes it's not, they are fucking retarded) and the best way it can rally support from its domestic audience is by playing the victim. There are many other circumstances of this; the Japanese invasion (granted, that was terrible and Japan has a lot to answer for. But, to say that this is not used both domestically and internationally to China's advantage by being the perpetual victim will only display a complete lack of political and geopolitical understanding.), the 1999 bombing of the US embassy in Belgrade (once again, granted, you have a right to be pissed off, but the reaction was completely overboard and used by the party to engender nationalism in a country that has 56 ethnicities of which at least 5 do not wish to be part of it...., hello imagined community), The collision between the US spy plane over Hainan island, discussions regarding US trade, issues concerning carbon emissions, human rights issues, etc. etc. China is the perpetual victim. But why? Why would the world want to target China over any other country. China never invaded Europe or started any world war. China has one of the smallest nuclear arsenals out of the 7 who hold them. China never tried to export communism (in any serious way) outside of its own region. China played a very small part in the cold war and for a good deal was friendly with the US. So why the fuck would we want to demonise China? Maybe be cause they actually DO have some issues to answer for, just maybe? China acts like it has never done anything wrong, acts like it has never invaded another country, etc. Come on, live in the real world like the rest of us. I have no doubt that some Western media is hyping shit up about Tibet, they hype everything. That shit is not to be taken personally but to be viewed through the prism of advertising dollar that rides on the back of sensationalism. HOWEVER! Try reading Chinese news for a while and see how much of that shit is believable! Do you think you always get the full and honest story here? Why don't they ever talk about to social unrest in the rural areas? Why don't they discuss the protests outside Zhongnanhai (party head quarters) by people who have been dispossessed of land? Why don' they talk about how useless the petition system is because those who do petition get harrassed? Why don't they talk about a political system that has no transparency? You can't even find out what policies have been enacted and how they are implemented. Why should we just trust the politicians? Why do they automatically know better than us? I thought we were supposed to live in an egailtarian society? Why can't I scrutinise them like they scrutinise me? The only reason why the Chinese people don't argue is because the CAN'T. I can tell you from experience that most Chinese people are cynical about their government but live in apathy because they don't want to die. The Chinese people have got it better than any time in history and they have their government to thank for that. But, they could have it so much better if the government was not so corrupt and didn't rely on bullshit propaganda to cover their own inadequacies. I have extensive education on the country, culture and politics. I live here, I speak the language, I work in the industry. Try telling me I'm wrong mother fucker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nightsblood Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 I wanted to let you know I've been following your posts, and I appreciate your efforts for keeping me entertained. You are han chinese right? What generation? I bet you live in vancouver too.... You motherfuckers are like robots, every public forum I look at in the past month that has any vague mention of china, the olympics, and the tibet crackdown, you guys spam the board with the exact same text and the exact same images of cnn misidentifying nepalese policemen. Do you guys have secret meetings and shit to plan it all out? A secret handshake? yeah, i noticed this too. remember that since the incident in 1989 with the students, the chinese commie government has decided to use nationalism to rally support from the population. traditional chinese culture, like every other culture, is highly chauvinistic and china's psyche is still scarred by the fact that it was once a mighty empire that was then colonized humiliated on the battle field and during the WWII occupation. many chinese have grown up in an environment where they are taught to believe that they are the best people in the world but are always under attack by wicked foreigners. combined with the emphasis on extreme conformity in chinese culture and massive organized espionage activity among chinese expatriates and an you have these endless mindless robotic internet posts that don't actually engage in any real argument. my personal impression of chinese people is very good by the way. i used to live in a chinese immigrant neighborhood and they are good people. i can't honestly say that about every ethnic group that i've had to deal with. they just have a fucked up government that is manipulating the people for it's own wealth and power. not that much difference that what goes in a lot of other countries including this one. oh shit, i just realized christo said everything i did but better. should of read the whole thread first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christo-f Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Ok, I was fired up when I wrote that. If I could I'd edit out my last line, there was no need to talk shit like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thinksmall Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 lol dood. well, i have nothing else to say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christo-f Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 Why is that? You seem to have a habit of making claims and then not being able to argue a point or make useful counter arguments. Doesn't do much for the credibility of your opinion or yourself. IF you believe something, tell us about it and we'll give it a fair chance. But to come on here and post something like that pretty much says to me that you've got nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WORDISM45 Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 figured that out about this dude a while ago Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loc Dogg Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 China is for sure in the spotlight for the next couple decades. I think its amazing that they still got such a tight grip on everything considering all new technologies and how big their population is. But the government is incredibly shady. i personally feel that they actually out do the US as the shadiest in the world. At least you can watch youtube here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lord_casek Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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