Australian Free-Tibet Protester Released in Beijing
With the Olympic games in Athens now over, the spotlight moves from the athletes to the country that will host the next games. The decision to stage the 2008 games in Beijing may have gone down well with the sponsors and broadcasters who fund the greatest show on earth…but it has ensured a torrent of criticism from politicians and protesters concerned about the human rights abuses that occur in China. Coinciding with the controversial handover of the Olympic mantle from Athens to Beijing, Free Tibet demonstrators converged in Beijing to launch their campaign to put pressure on China over Tibet. Two demonstrators, including Australian Liam Phelan, were detained after unfurling a banner that read ” no Olympics for Beijing until Tibet is free” in a park where the Beijing Olympic Stadium will be built. She-Fah Szetu spoke with Paul Bourke from the Australian Tibet Council, who is currently in Beijing.