On Monday the chaotic Parisian leg of the Olympic torch rally was cut short due to demonstrations. Several hundred protestors forced police to extinguish the flame at least three times and transport it to its final destination by bus. Chinese organisers also cancelled a reception of the torch in front of City Hall, from which Green Party activists had hung a Tibetan flag and a banner depicting Olympic rings as hand-cuffs. Similar banners could be seen hanging from the city’s main landmarks including the Eiffel tower and Notre Dame.
On Tuesday seven demonstrators were arrested in San Francisco before the torch even arrived, after they had climbed up the Golden Gate Bridge and attached a pro-Tibet banner to it. During the actual relay yesterday, the torch disappeared out of view for an hour, before reappearing a mile inland. Officials decided to take a shorter route to avoid clashes with demonstrators, but neither this measure nor the increased police security were able to prevent confrontations.
Meanwhile China has condemned what it called “attempts to sabotage and destroy” the torch relay. Although experts are calling it a “grotesque embarrassment” and negative PR for Beijing, the government has also announced that it has no plans to cancel the on-going event (Should it be boycotted? What do you think?).
