Olympic torch lit despite protest
Posted by Henric C. Jensen on March 24, 2008
The Olympic torch has been lit at a ceremony in Greece that was briefly disrupted by pro-Tibet activists. Protesters from media rights group Reporters Without Borders broke through the cordon of 1,000 police officers in Olympia as China’s envoy spoke.Activists had vowed to protest over the violence in and around Tibet.The torch will now be carried around Greece before being sent to China to start a journey through 20 countries, returning to Beijing on 8 August.
The route includes the torch being taken to the top of Mount Everest and through Tibet.
See map of Olympic torch relay route
As Liu Qi, head of the Beijing Olympic organising committee, spoke ahead of the torch lighting, three men broke into the ceremony venue.
One ran up behind him attempting to display a black flag depicting the Olympic rings made from handcuffs.
The men were from the France-based media rights watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders, or RSF), which has called for a boycott of the opening ceremony of the games. More…
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