THE French capital on Monday witnessed scenes that remind one of some Hollywood sci-fi films. A large presence of security personnel was there to protect the 80 runners carrying the Olympic torch and avoid the protests, arrests and scuffles that broke out in London a day earlier. In Paris the torch and the runners on the 28-km route were guarded by 65 motorcycle personnel, 200 police on roller-blades and an additional 200 security men in riot gear. Olympic Games are thought to symbolize the ability of sport to bring people of different races and those holding different political ideologies at one place to celebrate the unity of humanity. “Keep sport free of politics” has been a refrain for sometime. Yet host nations' policies continue to inflame the passions. British badminton legend Richard Vaughan and India's football captain Bhaichung Bhutia withdrew as torch-bearers in London on Sunday. Vaughan said: “Being an economic power, they have a responsibility to help stop humanitarian crises and I don't feel that China is doing that.” Others boycotted the torch relay to express their anger at Beijing's policy on Darfur. Amnesty International, in a report entitled China: The Olympics countdown, said the Olympics have failed to acts as a catalyst for reform in China. It said: It is increasingly clear that much of the current wave of repression is occurring not in spite of the Olympics but actually because of the Olympics.” But should sporting events be used to make a political stand? The person in the eye of the storm, the Dalai Lama has not called for boycotts or protests. He doesn't even call for the independence of Tibet but for greater autonomy within China. A “one-country, two-systems” idea is being put forward as a model for Tibet. This has worked well in Hong Kong - though observers say Tibet and Hong Kong are at different stages of development. Speaking in China, the International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge has expressed serious concern and called for a rapid, peaceful resolution of Tibet crisis. Rogge also condemned the violent protests which have accompanied the progress of the Olympic torch on its global relay. “Violence for whatever reason is not compatible with the values of the torch relay or the Olympic Games,” he rightly said. Visiting 135 cities in 20 countries, covering 137,000 km in 130 days, the flame is kept lit throughout the journey. Keeping the flame alive is a tradition - it needs to be kept alive as the Olympic ideal of harmony between nations. __
