Terrorism seen as biggest threat to Beijing
11/09/2007 |
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Terrorism is the biggest threat to next year's Beijing Olympics, a state newspaper cited top Chinese security officials as saying on Tuesday, a concern echoed by the head of Interpol.
The report did not say which groups might target the Games, but China is home to several restive minorities such as the Muslim Uighurs in the far western region of Xinjiang who have been blamed by Beijing for bomb attacks in recent years.
"Although the general security situation for the Beijing Olympics remains stable, we still face the challenges of terrorism, separatism and extremism," the official China Daily quoted Minister of Public Security Zhou Yongkang as saying.
"Terrorism, in particular, poses the biggest threat," he told a security conference, the newspaper said.
Ronald Noble, Secretary General of Interpol, told the Beijing conference that the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks and a purported new videotape from Osama bin Laden underlined the "primary global criminal threat" that the Games and all major global events must protect themselves against.
"According to published media reports, hundreds of thousands of athletes, high-ranking government officials, celebrities, journalists and tourists plan to make their way to Beijing next August to participate in, report on and enjoy these Olympics," he told conference delegates, according to a transcript of his speech at www.interpol.int.
"Billions of people will watch the Games on television and follow the media reports covering them. The combination of these elements makes such a major global event a prime theoretical target for al Qaeda and other terrorist groups."
Regional and "ethnic" conflicts around the world could spill over at the Games, "and some international terrorist or extremist groups might make use of the event to launch attacks for their own purposes", added deputy security minister Liu Jing.
"The Olympic Games is a happy gathering for people from all countries, but it's also a big target for terrorism," Liu said.
The China Daily also said the vice-minister had noted that some organisations and individuals had tried to politicise the Olympics and intervene in China's internal affairs, and some others were planning to disrupt the Olympic torch relay.
The relay's route -- which has already sparked controversy with Taiwan refusing to let the torch in -- should be guarded throughout its 130-day journey, Liu said. China considers self-ruled Taiwan sovereign territory.
China has previously lashed out at threats to boycott or disrupt the Games on the pretext of protesting against human rights abuses or highlighting the plight of Tibet, saying it is purely a sporting event.
Still, Liu said he was confident nothing would go wrong next year. "Preparation for the security work is advancing smoothly," Liu said.
(Source: Guardian.co.uk)
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