China brushes off boycott call, says torch still heading to Tibet
BEIJING (AFP) - China brushed off Olympic boycott calls Wednesday as it said the torch relay would go through Tibet and scale Mount Everest despite deadly unrest in the vast Himalayan region.

Jiang Xiaoyu, the vice president of the Olympic organising committee, said the route for the longest Olympic torch relay in history would be unaffected by the protests in Tibet that have triggered a huge security crackdown.

"The relay will proceed as scheduled," Jiang told a news conference. "We firmly believe that the Tibetan Autonomous Region is able to ensure the stability of Lhasa."

The relay is scheduled to scale the world's highest peak during the first part of May and then return to Tibet from June 19-21, the last two days in the capital Lhasa.

Currently, the streets of Lhasa are saturated with security forces and foreign reporters are banned from travelling there as authorities try to end protests against China's 57-year rule of Tibet.

China says Tibetan rioters killed 13 "innocent civilians" in protests in Lhasa on Friday. Tibetan exiles say hundreds of people may have been killed in the Chinese crackdown.




Jiang said the ascent of Mount Everest would be one of the "highlights" of the relay, which will begin in Beijing on March 31 with a ceremony on Tiananmen Square, the scene of 1989 democracy protests that were violently crushed.

"It is a great feat in Olympic history," he said of the climb up Everest.

He also spoke out against calls to boycott the opening ceremony or even the entire August 8-24 Olympics over the crackdown on anti-Chinese protests in Tibet.

"We do believe that the majority of the people around the world will make the right decision and participate in the Olympic Games and also the opening ceremony," Jiang said.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner has suggested that the European Union may consider a boycott of the opening ceremony in protest at the crackdown on Tibetans.

The idea was suggested on Tuesday by Paris-based media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and Kouchner said it was "not a bad idea".

However, world leaders have so far resisted boycott calls and Kouchner said Wednesday that given China's increasing economic might, the scheme looked "unrealistic".

"In terms of the economy, we depend on China a lot more than they do on us. It is an essential partner for just about every country in the world," he said.

"What are we supposed to do? End our economic relations with China? Is that a serious proposition?"

Jiang said the opening ceremony and the Olympic Games should be seen as a chance to deepen understanding between the Chinese people and the people of the world.

"The ceremony is a splendid event that people are waiting for," he said.

"We hope that through the Beijing Olympics people around the world can have a better understanding of the Chinese people."

The Beijing Olympic torch relay is the longest and most ambitious ever planned, lasting 130 days and covering 137,000 kilometres (85,000 miles).

Jiang said the relay would bring the message of "peace and harmony" from China to the rest of the world.

Following the launch ceremony in Beijing, one flame will be separated from the torch and kept in a special lantern that will be transported to base camp at Everest, ready for the ascent of the world's highest peak.

Another flame will embark on a 33-day, 97,000-kilometre international leg before returning to mainland China on May 4.

In the domestic leg, the relay will then cover the entire country over 97 days in the lead-up to the start of the Games.