(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-05-06 07:15

It is unethical to disturb the Beijing Olympic Games, says an article in People's Daily. The following is an excerpt:

Of late, those who tried to "hijack" the Olympics may be feeling disappointed, for more and more people see through the attempts of those Tibetan secessionists and more and more people have voiced their sentiments against the "politicization of the Olympics".

As an official from Kazakhstan recently said, the attempt to turn the Olympics into a political event is a blasphemy to mankind. Jean-David Levitte, the diplomatic advisor of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, also said on his recent visit to Beijing that Olympics is a sports and friendship festival of the world's people and it has nothing to do with politics. Before that, hundreds of athletes in the United States demonstrated in Chicago, saying that "Olympics can't be used as a political tool". Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), reiterated the reassuring message that political events should not be allowed into Olympic sports venues.

All this shows that it is unethical to try to turn the Beijing Olympics into a political event. The Olympics has carried the common dreams of mankind and conveyed the hopes of the world for peace and progress. For the past 100 years, modern Olympics has become a platform for people from different countries, different ethnic groups and different religious beliefs to share civilization and conduct dialogues.

However, the Dalai group viewed the Beijing Olympics as a chance for their secessionist activities. In early 2008, the Dalai group started to call on some countries to link the "Tibet issue" with the Beijing Games.

Thus, Tibetan secessionists violently grabbed the torches during the relay and even attacked a disabled torch-bearer. The farces make us wonder why the torch relay, a ritual to spread peace and civilization, is distorted into a tool of releasing violence, showing discontentment and splitting China. And why is an event deemed by the world to promote understanding between different civilizations turned into a tool for slandering and demonizing China?

Anyone who tries to turn the Olympic Games into a political event is sure to be condemned by all the people who value the Olympic spirit.

(China Daily 05/06/2008 page8)