The opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics featured an opulent cast of
10,000 performers that conjured images of China's imperial past rather than its
communist present.
The state-of-the-art athletic venues — epitomized by the surreal Bird's Nest
stadium in Beijing — were packed and ran like clockwork.
The much-anticipated air pollution over the Chinese capital for the most part
never showed up due to the enforced demobilization of hundreds of thousands of
workers, vehicles and factories.
The designated protest areas mandated by Olympic protocol were deserted, and
some of those who applied for permission to use them earned a ticket to a
re-education camp.
The Chinese threw a $40 billion sports bash and invited the world to party as
long as the visitors stuck to the government's rules. The sporting events were
a feast for global viewers, with winning performances by athletes from 55
nations. American swimmer Michael Phelps won a record eight gold medals, and
the Jamaican sprinting sensation Usain Bolt blazed his way to three golds. The
U.S. team led in total medals, while the Chinese won more gold.
Those who didn't comport with the authoritarian script included eight Americans
who attempted to protest for a free Tibet. They were arrested, sentenced to 10
days in jail and then expelled from the country. U.S. Ambassador to China Clark
T. Randt Jr. lamented that "China has not used the occasion of the Olympics to
demonstrate greater tolerance and openness."
The human rights group Amnesty International issued a statement criticizing the
International Olympic Committee for turning a blind eye to rights abuses during
the games. Roseann Rife, Amnesty's Asia-Pacific spokeswoman, said that the
price of the sports extravaganza was forced evictions, detention of activists
and restrictions on journalists.
Rife noted that of 77 applications to use the protest sites, government
officials said 74 were withdrawn, two were suspended and one was vetoed.
Reporters Without Borders, an advocate of a free press, documented more than
100 cases in which reporters or Internet bloggers covering the Olympics outside
protected venues were harassed or detained.
IOC President Jacques Rogge described the Beijing Olympics as a "truly
exceptional Games," and they were. But when the world noted China's failure to
honor its commitment to allow greater freedom of expression, the IOC went out
of its way to be the government's enabler.
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