"Protest as Olympic Torch is Lit"

Caitlin Fredricks

1. 1. Citation

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/03/24/torch.relay/index.html#cnnSTCText

Author Unknown

2. 2. Summary

This article discusses some issues occurring in relation to the 2008 Olympics that will be held in Beijing, China this upcoming summer. On Monday 3/24 in Greece, the Olympic torch was lit in preparation for its travel to China. During the time when a Chinese committee chief by the name of Liu Qi was giving a speech in Chinese regarding the upcoming Olympics, a protestor ran up behind him and unrolled a flag showing a negative spin on the Olympics. It was an Olympic flag, but what used to be the five Olympic rings was replaced by five handcuffs, which was supposed to represent the lack of human rights in China. The man was quickly taken away, but he did make a really good point, and a long lasting statement about the life of Chinese people. While many of China’s political leaders seem enthusiastic and happy to be hosting the Olympics, many of the people of China are not. They believe they should receive the rights they deserve, before China welcomes other countries into their own for the 2008 Olympics. From further research, I was able to see what the Chinese people meant. The lives of Chinese people are under extreme control of China’s communist government. For example, the government tends to discriminate against certain groups (such as those living in Tibet), controls the number of children couples can have, as well as where certain people can and cannot work. To me and others living in the U.S., these concepts might be foreign, but they are very prominent issues for the people of China. From the article, we can also gather that the Olympics might be in danger if it is held in China. Its people are hostile towards the government right now, and might try anything to make a really big statement. As for the Olympic torch, that might be in danger too. Throughout the month of April, the torch will be traveling the world, including places such as Tibet where many protests and violent actions have taken place, in response to lack of human rights given to Chinese people by their government.

3. 3. Reactions

a. This article relates to the AP World History theme of changes in functions and structures of states and in attitudes toward states and political identities, including the emergence of the nation-state. This is because Chinese people are finally realizing the lack of freedoms they have as people (as compared to other countries such as the United States), and are now beginning to take a stand against the Chinese government, in ways such as the man in this article did (by showing an Olympic flag with handcuffs instead of rings during the lighting of the Olympic torch, which represented the lack of human right in China). While not all attempts have been as prominent as this one, many people of China, especially those in Tibet, are beginning to take a stand against the Chinese government. Hopefully nothing too violent will occur, for something like this could endanger the Olympics, and all people who participate in it.

b. For many years, the people of China have not had rights, such as those that the people of the U.S. have. For example, discrimination frequently and noticeably occurs (especially against people of Tibet, for their ethnic differences), the government controls where and where not people can work based solely on where they live (even within China), and the government also controls how many children a couple can have (couples are limited to having one child). Another thing that upsets the people of China is it high rates for execution and imprisonment. China had the highest execution rate in the world in the year of 2005. People are also readily imprisoned whenever they have something negative to say about the government. This makes me wonder if all those executed are actually being executed for legitimate reasons, as well as why people are basically being given no freedom of speech. As far as I’m concerned, the people of China have many good and valid reasons to fight back against their oppressive government.

c. This article was probably written by an outsider, most likely an American since it was published by an American news source, but we can not tell what gender the author is, nor does it seem very relevant. The person writing does a good job stating the facts, but could have made the article even better by adding more history to it. The person in clearly not Chinese, for if they were they would probably be lashing out in some way against the government, so they are definitely an outsider.

d. The author does not show particular favor with the Chinese people, or the Chinese government, but he/she does show concern for the Olympics, which can be heard in the tone he/she writes in when discussing how the Olympic torch will be traveling through the troubled lands of places like Tibet China. The author implies that something needs to be done, for the Olympics to occur safely for all people, and that this incident with the flag is only the beginning, if things are not kept under control.

e. A point of view missing in the article is that of a Chinese leader. While we do not hear directly from a Chinese citizen, we are able to interpret that most of them believe they are deprived of their rights. By hearing from a member of the Chinese government (a Chinese leader), we might gain better insight as to why these human rights are being withheld from China’s people, which would be very valuable information.

f. In my opinion, the Chinese people cannot be at fault, for they truly are deprived of rights that I believe every person should have. It seems to me that the Chinese government is way too involved in the lives of its people. The government should take a step back and realize that it is not their job to control the lives of their people, just to help them live their lives safely. This would kill two birds with one stone, since the people of China would be happy and peaceful, and China would still get to hold the Olympics, which is obviously something the Chinese leaders want to do. If things don’t change between the Chinese government and the citizens, the Olympics will be a disaster. Not only will Chinese people be fighting and endangering themselves, but they will also be endangering the lives of people who come from many nations to participate in the Olympics.