Subject: CND Special Series on China and 2000 Olympic Games (Part II)

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 13 May 93 01:52:31 EDT

*  *  *   C h i n a   N e w s   D i g e s t   *  *  *

           Special Series on China and 2000 Olympic Games (Part II)

                           Thursday, May 13, 1993

Table of Contents                                                 # of Lines
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1. Jiang Zemin Meets IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch ..............  25
2. News Briefs (7 Items): Preparation for and Opposition to Olympic Bid . 76
3. China Is All Abuzz with Olympic Games Fervor ......................... 71
4. Dissident Arrested for Opposing Beijing's Olympic Bid ................ 34
5. Sydney Says Olympic Votes Can't Be Bought ............................ 46
6. Spectacular Opening to 1st East Asia Games Sets Olympic Bid Alight ... 65
7. Samaranch Praises China's Qualifications ............................. 60
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1. Jiang Zemin Meets IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch ............... 25
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Forwarded by: Liu Jian
Source: The Xinhua General Overseas News Service, 05/09/1993

President of China Jiang Zemin met here on Sunday Juan Antonio Samaranch, the
President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).  the IOC chief is in
the city to attend the opening ceremony of the First East Asian Games this
evening.  

Jiang extended his gratitude to Mr. Samaranch for his consistent concern over
and support to the development of China's sports, as well as welcome to his 
seventh visit to china.	China will make persistent efforts to promote the 
Olympic spirit, Jiang said. In this way, China, with 22 percent of the world's
population, is offering a great support and contribution to the Olympic 
movement, he said.

The Chinese President reaffirmed that the Chinese government and the whole 
Chinese people will, as before, give their enthusiastic support to Beijing's 
bid for the Olympic Games in the year 2000.  Mr. Samaranch warmly 
congratulated Jiang on his election as the new Chinese President. Samaranch 
said he cherished a deep respect towards China and the Chinese people.  the 
IOC chief also praised China for its impressive achievements in developing 
its economy and sports.

Also present at the meeting were Chen Xitong, President of the Beijing 2000
Olympic Games Bid Committee (BOBICO), Wu Shaozu, Minister of the State
Physical Culture and Sports Commission, Huang Ju, Mayor of Shanghai and
Chairman of the East Asian Games Organizing Committee, and He Zhenliang,
Vice-Minister of the State Sports Commission and Executive Vice-president of
the BOBICO.  Sunday afternoon, Jiang also met here IOC Vice-presidents
Richard Kevan Gosper of Australia and Kim Un Yong of South Korea, Olympic
Council of Asia (OCA) President Sheikh Ahmad Fahad of Kuwait, some other IOC
members, members of the OCA executive bureau and members of the Council of
the Coordination Committee of the East Asian National Olympic committees.

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2. News Briefs (7 Items): Preparation for and Opposition to Olympic Bid . 76
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[Xinhua, 4/26/1993] The six cities bidding to host the 2000 Olympic Games
has been in a "decisive stage", a top official responsible for Beijing's bid
said here on Monday.  Chen Xitong, President of the Beijing 2000 Olympic Bid
Committee (BOBICO), told the International Olympic Committee (IOC) members
Anani Matthia and Rampaul Ruhee that Beijing should make more efforts and do
better in its bidding.  Chen said that the people in Beijing and China have
shown great enthusiam to Beijing's bid.  Matthia of Togo said what Beijing
has done during its bidding campaign is "excellent and impressive." Beijing
has good condition to host the 2000 Olympic Games.  Ruhee of Mauritius also
wished Beijing's bid a success. (Forwarded by: Jian liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[Xinhua, 4/21/1993] BEIJING -- He Zhenliang, President of the Chinese
Olympic Committee, said here today Beijing would invite children to attend
the Games, if the city wins the bid for hosting the 2000 Olympics.  The COC
President told a visiting youth delegation from France that if Beijing wins
the bid, one child from each country will be invited to attend the opening
ceremony by the organizers. He also gave a brief introduction on the prepa-
ration of Beijing's bidding. (Forwarded by: Jian Liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[Xinhua, 4/9/1993] Beijing has named an Olympic language school in an at-
tempt to boost the city's bid for hosting the Olympic Games in 2000. The
Beijing 2000 Olympic Games Bid Committee (BOBICO) Friday granted the title
to the Xicheng Foreign Languages School, saying it will ensure a good lan-
guage service for winning the games.  (Forwarded by: Jian Liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[Xinhua, 4/12/1993] Hong Kong sports chief Sales Augusto reiterated Monday
Hong Kong's support to Beijing's bid for the right to host the 2000 Olympic
Games, saying that bringing the games to Beijing is also the desire of Hong
Kong. He said that all Hong Kong people and sports families hope the 2000
Olympics will go to Beijing.  (Forwarded by: Jian Liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[New York Times, 4/21/1993] Human Rights Watch, an organization that monit-
ors human rights abuses worldwide, is lobbying International Olympic Commit-
tee members in an attempt to gain I.O.C. opposition to Beijing's bid to hold
the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. Robert Bernstein, chairman of Human Rights
Watch, said his United States-based organization received "an unacceptable
response" from the I.O.C.  after his group had sent a letter to the I.O.C.'s
President, Juan Antonio Samaranch, protesting the consideration of China as
a host country. Bernstein said that Human Rights Watch might ask athletes to
boycott the 2000 Olympics if China were selected as the site. Recently,
China has released several priests and other political prisoners. Skeptical
observers believe this is part of a public relations campaign to land the
Olympics.  In addition, I.O.C. members have been assured by local and re-
gional officials in China that there will be no opposition expressed to
their visits. (Forwarded by: Jian Liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[Times, 4/6/1993] Prime Minister John Major was yesterday told by Juan An-
tonio Samaranch, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC),
that Manchester "deserves" to stage the 2000 Olympic Games because "the
United Kingdom occupies a very special place in the Olympic movement". Bri-
tain had also invented many sports, Samaranch said, and "the rules had come
from this country". Manchester has already received more than Pounds 75 mil-
lion in direct funding to build a velodrome and indoor arena and to prepare
the ground for the 80,000-seat main stadium in the east of the city, the
plans for which were announced last month. (Forwarded by: Jian Liu)
                                ___ ___ ___

[Xinhua, 4/18/1993] Nearly 10,000 Berlin citizens marched to the Berlin
Olympics headquarters Sunday to protest the city's bid for hosting the
summer Olympic Games in the year 2000.  Police said more than 9,000 oppo-
nents marched Sunday afternoon from the old checkpoint charlie crossing
point of the Berlin Wall into the city center, carrying banners with slogans
such as "Olympics Monster," "No Olympics," and "Attack Olympic Bosses." They
were trying to scare off an 11-member Enquiry Commission of the Internation-
al Olympic Committee who arrived Saturday on a five-day visit to examine
Berlin's plans. (Forwarded by: Jian)

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3. China Is All Abuzz with Olympic Games Fervor ......................... 71
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Forwarded by: Stephen Kam-Cheung Ng <[email-masked]>
Source: Chicago Tribune, 04/27/93

BEIJING -- China began its campaign to host the Olympic Games in the year
2000 by declaring the fly Public Enemy No. 1.

Preparing for International Olympic Committee inspectors who visited Beijing
last month, Communist Party bosses had decided that the city had too many
flies and the little buzzers could be detrimental to their Olympic aspira-
tions. An all-out assault on the pesky critters began last spring.

Beijing purchased 130 tons of pesticides and 200,000 fly swatters and held
training courses on fly eradication. The media gave detailed instructions on
what tactics were most efficient, where the enemy could be located and what
pesticides might be most effective.

The war was won, but only temporarily, when sub-zero winter cold killed off
what remained of Beijing's embattled fly population in time for the IOC
visit.

Before the Olympic officials arrived in Beijing, police had cleared the
sidewalks of thousands of market stalls. Slums were hidden behind plastic
sheeting and beggars were banished to the city limits along with all truck
traffic.

Many of Beijing's 10 million residents found themselves sitting in the win-
ter cold because authorities had turned off polluting boilers and coal-
burning power plants.

The campaign worked. There were no traffic jams, no pollution and the sun
even shone. A gentle breeze wafted in from the Gobi Desert, carrying away
the city smells. Police nabbed litterbugs and anyone who spat on the side-
walks.

Last week, He Zengliang,  China's  Olympic Committee president, denied China
presented each IOC delegate with a $40,000 "gift basket" during their in-
spection tour in March.  However, he admitted that China gave the IOC a set
of ancient terra cotta warriors from the archeological site in northern
Xian. He said the rare artifacts were not a gift, but only on loan for dis-
play at the IOC's new Olympic Museum.

IOC President Juan Antonio Samarach and 23 IOC delegates will be back in
Beijing in May for a second inspection tour after watching the East-Asian
Games that China is hosting in Shanghai.

Since the earlier visit, an uncanny number of Chinese trade missions have
headed for Africa, which has 46 Olympic committees and an important block of
14 voting IOC members.

No longer shy about soliciting foreign help, Beijing's Olympic Committee
also has asked a movie studio to produce several slick promotion films.

The committee also hired American public relations experts to present its
case and repair the image of a city where just four years ago students were
shot down after clamoring for political reform and an end to nepotism and
corruption.

The American PR men brought with them a film on President Clinton's campaign
for the presidency as an example of how negative publicity can be turned
into victory.

And when one IOC delegate observed not many Chinese speak English, a boi-
sterous Chinese official replied: "By the year 2000, more Chinese will speak
English than in the United States."

"Neither now nor in the future will there be organizations in Beijing op-
posed to the Olympics," a Chinese official declared.

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4. Dissident Arrested for Opposing Beijing's Olympic Bid ................ 34
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Forwarded by: Zhao Hua
Source: AP, 5/5/1993

BEIJING -- A veteran political activist has been arrested for opposing
Beijing's bid to host the Olympics in the year 2000, a U.S.-based human
rights group said today.

Qin Yongmin, who argues that China is too poor to host the Olympics, was
arrested two weeks ago in Beijing, where he was trying to gather support for
his cause, according to Human Rights in China, a New York-based rights group
founded by Chinese students and scholars.

The group said police escorted Qin back to his home town of Wuhan, in central
China, where he was jailed.

Quin had written open letters to Chinese authorities and members of the
International Olympic Committee opposing the Beijing bid and saying he had
been subject to repeated police harassment. Qin was detained in March during
a trip to Beijing and held for 40 hours before being released "under
supervision."

His home was searched and personal papers, including a draft of his auto-
biography and some poems, were confiscated, the group said.

The Chinese government is eager to host the 2000 Olympics because it views
them as an affirmation that it is a full-fledged member of the modern world.

In its bid application to the IOC, China promised that there would be no
opposition to the games. But Chinese privately have expressed concern that
they will be forced to make contributions to help cover the enormous expense
of hosting the event.

When China hosted the Asian Games in 1990, citizens were forced to donate
money.

Qin, who is in his 50s, was imprisoned for seven years for his leadership
role in a pro-democracy movement in the late 1970s. A former steel factory
worker, Qin is married and has a two-year-old daughter, the group said.

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5. Sydney Says Olympic Votes Can't Be Bought ............................ 46
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Forwarded by: Jian Liu
Source: BC Cycle, 4/26/1993

Sydney, a frontrunner with Beijing in the race for the 2000 Olympics, dis-
missed on Monday suggestions China could buy the votes needed to win Septem-
ber's ballot.

Bruce Baird, the state Minister in charge of Sydney's bid, said it was
"totally untrue" that the 91 International Olympic Committee (IOC) delegates
who pick the host city could be bought with gifts and favours.

"It is one of the things that is bandied around...but the reality is that
the great majority of people there are concerned only with sport and have
come up through a strong sporting tradition," he told a news conference.

"If anybody started to offer anything untoward, the great majority would be
absolutely outraged," he added.

Baird agreed with a recent unofficial IOC poll and odds from British book-
makers that Sydney and Beijing were the current joint favourites.

China has mounted an aggressive public relations campaign to win the games,
but last week denied presenting visiting Olympic dignitaries with thousands
of dollars worth of gifts and ancient relics.

China's Olympic Committee chief He Zhengliang said overseas media reports
of a US$40,000 gift basket to each member of a recent IOC delegation were
"complete rumour."

Baird was asked if he was concerned that China was using foreign aid as a
means to get votes.

"Undoubtedly China is doing a lot, we know they are, in terms of the Afri-
can countries, other developing countries in addition. They have given a lot
of aid and are reminding people that they have given the aid," he said.
"They have got a legitimate role in doing that...if we had given the extent
of aid that they have, we would also be doing that. ...But it is going to be
determined by more than the aid that they have  given," he said. "The edge
we have is that we have been to every modern Olympic Games, we have a very
strong technical bid, we have the world's greatest city, we have no security
problems and we have a great environment," Baird said.

Sydney has stressed that it is the only city guaranteeing that all venues
for sporting events will be within 30 minutes travel of the Olympic village.

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6. Spectacular Opening to 1st East Asia Games Sets Olympic Bid Alight ... 65
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Forwarded by: Liu Jian
Source: South China Morning Post, by Jeremy Walker in Shanghai, 05/10/1993.

The president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Mr Juan Antonio
Samaranch, witnessed a spectacular opening to the first East Asian Games in
Shanghai last night.

Mr Samaranch, who travelled from Beijing in the early afternoon, was the
guest of honour at an extravagant, colourful show, rounded off by a gigantic
fireworks display in the Hongkou Stadium.

Although Mr Samaranch was given a standing ovation by a capacity crowd of
30,000, he did not, as expected, offer official words of support for the
East Asian Games or for China.

Having taken in what Shanghai had to offer, the most powerful man in Olympics
heads back to Beijing this evening and later this month goes to Sydney -
Beijing's main rival in the multi-million dollar bid to stage the 2000 Olympic
Games.

Mr Samaranch, along with his entourage of IOC officials, must have marvelled
at the two-hour spectacle.

"The people of Shanghai support Beijing's Olympic bid," read a large banner
inside the stadium.

And outside the stadium the local authorities pulled off a clinical operation
by clearing traffic and blocking side streets on the routes to the stadium
from the various hotels housing athletes and officials.

Thousands of people lined the streets as the convoys moved through and the
return journey was lit up by coloured lights as the city came alive to the
games.

Mr Samaranch had hardly taken his seat when he was up again for the Chinese
national anthem - a tune which will become very familiar over the next nine
days as the Chinese athletes are set to dominate the 12 sports.

The Japanese delegation led out the nine teams, followed by a group of 60
Shanghai girls dressed in Japan's national costume surrounding a float
carrying a model of Mount Fuji.

Then came Taiwan, followed by Hongkong, whose float depicted a high-rise
office block with a crown on top and with an escort of girls dressed in
silver space suits.

Tenpin bowler Cat Che, an Asian Games gold medal winner in Seoul in 1986, had
the honour of carrying the Hongkong flag.

North Korea, South Korea, Mongolia - led by three near naked wrestlers on a
chilly evening - Macau, Guam and finally China, with its 402-strong
delegation, completed the march.

The games were declared open by the President, Mr Jiang Zemin, before the
Olympic flame was lit.

Mandarin was used throughout the ceremony, with only a few words in English.

Despite this barrier, the message from China to Mr Samaranch was loud and
clear in the games' anthem, The Rising East Asia.

It recounts that "here the sunrise is the earliest. Here civilisation
dawned first . . .

"Rising East Asia, you've begun a brilliant new chapter . . . ushered in
a new era of prosperity."

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7. Samaranch Praises China's Qualifications ............................. 60
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Forwarded by: A CND Reader
Source: UPI, 05/09/93
 
SHANGHAI -- International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch
elated his Chinese hosts Monday by discounting China's poor human rights
record and praising Beijing's qualifications to host the 2000 Summer
Olympics.
 
Samaranch, in Shanghai for the opening ceremony of the first East Asian
Games, said all six candidate cities had the same opportunity to host the
Games, but added that China's avid sports fans, improving facilities and
record as good hosts made Beijing an impressive candidate.
 
"Now you have excellent sports facilities and also an excellent sports orga-
nization," he said at a news conference.
 
"But to organize an Olympic Games....it is also very important that the home
team is very successful," he added, a reference to China's status as a world
sports power.
 
Beijing and Sydney currently are believed locked in a two-way race to host
the 2000 Olympics, trailed by Manchester, England; Berlin, Brasilia and
Istanbul, Turkey. The host city will be named in September.
 
China is placing enormous importance on winning the Games, which it sees as
a way to refute critics and raise its international prestige, still damaged
four years after a bloody June 1989 crackdown on protesting students at
Beijing's Tiananmen Square.
 
Rejecting outright the idea that Beijing's bid would be hurt by its poor
human rights record, Samaranch said I.O.C. voting members, scheduled to
decide on the site of the 2000 Olympics in Monte Carlo in September, would
judge China on its sports records, not its human rights record.
 
"In the International Olympic Committee, we have in mind that the People's
Republic of China is an important member of the Olympic family, " he said.
 
Samaranch said China already had proven itself as host for the 1990 Asian
Games in Beijing and the current 10-day East Asian Games, at which China's
472-member team was expected to snatch the lion's share of the 168 gold
medals at stake.
 
China, with a population of almost 1.2 billion, many of them sports fana-
tics, was fourth in the gold medal tally at last year's Olympic Games in
Barcelona.
 
It is believed the country's booming economy and huge number of potential
customers could sway sponsors to urge their National Olympic Committee
members to vote for China.
 
Chinese President Jiang Zemin, Samaranch and 14 other I.O.C. members
attended the Sunday opening ceremony of the East Asian Games, a nine-
country mini-Olympics designed by the Chinese government in large part to
impress their powerful I.O.C. guests.
 
Samaranch and I.O.C. Vice Presidents Kevan Gosper and Kim Un-Yung appeared
suitably impressed, heaping accolades on the Shanghai organizers.
 
Samaranch also denied the current friction between China and Britain over
Hong Kong before it returns to Chinese rule in 1997 would affect the Beijing
bid.
 
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