They’re the Chinese guys in blue tracksuits who are never far from he Olympic torch and no-one seems sure who they are. Not even the British Olympic Minister. Several of you asked about them yesterday. Shirong Chen’s our China Editor and a regular on WHYS. He’s written this dispatch. I thought you’d like to read it.
SHIRONG CHEN’S DISPATCH
They are the cream of China’s armed police, carefully selected from across the country, with specialist training in crowd control and vehicle handling. That’s why they look like actors out of the film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. The seventy or so young officers were sworn in as the Olympic Flame Guardians in August 2007 to take responsibility during the torch relays across the continents and inside China. Their tasks are to ensure the original flame from Greece never goes out, and to guard the torchbearers during the relay. The ten to twelve young men seen in blue track suits come from a group of 30 officers who would run with the torchbearers throughout the torch relay outside China, and keep watch over the flame lanterns in hotels or on the chartered aeroplane in three shifts until the opening ceremony in Beijing on the 8th August.
Besides physical and technical training in collecting the flame and lighting up the torches, the guardians have also received training in foreign customs and basic language skills in English, French and German. But it looks as though their training isn’t enough to cope with the overwhelming protests.
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Pretty interesting tidbit of information to know!
Thanks!
Regards,
Brett ~ Richmond, Va.
So I was right. Secret police. Should never have been let in by the British or French authorities. Hopefully the American and Australian authorities will bar them and use their own police forces.
I realise that the flame needs attendants to make sure it does not go out, but i still think those guys look scary and as such do not represent the olympics very well.
Why isn’t each city through which the torch is to go through; left with the responsibility of arranging for its security? In the lead-up to the Olympic Games in Greece 2004, did this same security arrangement hold sway? What is the Chinese government so jittery about that she has to provide highly trained escorts for this flame? Sounds odd to me.
I must confess that this does raise questions regarding the need for Chinese secret police personnel to guard the flame during the relay from Greece to Beijing. Might it be argued that the preemptive action may well have stimulated some of the violence of the protesters?
Additionally, I think from what I have heard the flame had to be put out five times in Paris, yesterday, because it was constantly being attacked. This means that the objectives of the Secret Police were not achieved, at least insofar as ensuring the original flame was not extinguished.
I am worried about the escalating intensity of the protests and whether they will devolve into something more serious. And, how does one make a distinction between the runners and the flame and what happens if, during the protests, the runners are harmed? This makes me a little uncomforable, notwithstanding peoples’ feelings that their concerns about China hosting the Games are legitimate.
Thank you, Shirong Chen. I am not surprised – either by these special agents or by the extent of the protests. Perhaps it is time to admit that the symbolism of the traveling flame will not work for these games. And that if it is continued, it will only increase the calls for boycott. Virginia in Portland, OR
Good for them, they get to see the world.
I am sure pulling flame duty is an exciting duty: see new exotic lands, meet new people, and bop them on the head.
It is a story for their grandchildren.
A sad day, when Chinese security guards, representing a regime that kills its own people and millions of Tibetans, allowed to set foot in the great cities of London and Paris, attacking democratic, protesting European citizens in their own country, just to guard an Olympic torch–a tradition started by the Nazi Olympics.
It would be good to see the flame guards have a nice ceremony at the start of the Olympic games.
You know, bring them up and introduce them individually, give them an award, give them a washer and dryer.
We have such shoddy celebrities these day in the USA, China could propel them to TV commercial contracts, maybe a TV series.
This would turn a liability into an asset, an embarrassment into good public relations coup.
Would you buy mace or karate lessons endorsed by the flame men- sure you would: me too.
Don’t forget Saturday night live and the talk shows!
@george
maybe we could have flame torch protector idol…. as well as being able to sing and perform a perfect side split all attendants should be trained in public relations management, crowd control, how to smile, fashion sense, and the 7 points plan to peace
or alternatively they could just hire pete waterman and simon cowell to protect the torch, one of petes withering looks would stop a protester dead.
Hanah-
Might fly.
If “dancing with the stars” can actually work on TV anything is possible.
It is most pathetic even to dream of abandoning the rest of the torch relay route. Those idiots who have embarked on destabilising the peoples Olympics should know that their times would come. Just because the Olympics will be in china and they do not like China they embark on such mission.
Good on you China and have the best of the Olympics and let those whose jealous is so big, go and jump.
Jon Stewart said last night that the flame tradition was begun by Adolf Hitler when the games were in Berlin? If that’s the case, it’s perfectly in keeping with the tradition to have blackshirts “protecting” it. But isn’t that kind of like “protecting” the American flag from flag-burners? They’re both great symbols but when elevated to a protected status they lose their meaning.
And, no, I would not buy mace endorsed by the flame-men. Nor karate lessons for that matter.
btw, What kind of technical training goes into lighting a torch?
@Hannah
Sorry, let me get this… because they ‘look scary’ they shouldn’t represent what the olympics are? Could ‘look scary’ equate to ‘chinese’? Shock horror, that is what their appearance is.
Seriously, before any debate is recognised, sort out your inherent racism; you’ve managed well with blacks, to a limited extent asians, now do so with oriental people.
@Andrew
tell me of an occasion, or show some vid footage where the blue guys attacked “democratic, protesting European citizens” – so democratic they felt like causing mayhem and chaos in an event that the chinese population have worked hard towards.
Or maybe, and I’m sure many many others, just love to sensationalise, twist – and when all else fails – blatantly lie just so anything chinese is made out to be “evil of all things”.
Hah, these Olympics turning out a disaster. Man on the street in third world countries barely know of the Olympic’s existence and too busy scrounging around for work and scraps to care about them.
Only ones who care are professional athletes, politicians, led by corporate globalists who’s greed and selfish planning have brought on global warming and chaos.
The Chinese leaders have been exposed for what they are through this Olympic torch.and these Olympics just blowing up in their faces.
Let’s pause and reflect on the 36 Berlin Olympics which started these torch parades. Oh, the agony and the irony.
Jeff-
If Hanna says the flame men frighten her, they frighten her.
Sarcastic allusions to racism are uncalled for.
Security men look scary in any language and race to women.
That is their job.
.
“a limited extent asians, now do so with oriental people.”
Asian & oriental are synonyms in English “Jeff”.
They mean the same thing.
.
“event that the chinese population have worked hard towards”
The Chinese authorities are turning the Chinese population’s accomplishments to shame.
Kindly do not usurp the population’s hard work
equating it with poor policy and reasoning by authorities,
The Chinese government is not the Chinese population,
The Chinese population is not the Chinese government.
.
Jeff, you write English well, but do not have the contextual fine points of English down yet.
This is causing you to misinterpret others and to present arguments that are out of place.
Reading remarks to pick up the fine distinctions serve you better at this point.
……
rowan-
As a John Steward fan you should appreciate mace and karate lessons as satire.
This is not exactly off topic in light of the influx of several Chinese using English names on WHYS to address this very topic of the Torch and Olympics.
There are some misunderstandings due to:
Connotations-
Within contemporary society, connotation branches into a mixture of different meanings. These could include the contrast of a word or phrase with its primary, literal meaning (known as a denotation), with what that word or phrase specifically denotes. The connotation essentially relates to how anything may be associated with a word or phrase, for example, an implied value judgement or feelings.
* A stubborn person may be described as being either strong-willed or pig-headed. Although these have the same literal meaning (i.e. stubborn), strong-willed connotes admiration for the level of someone’s will, while pig-headed connotes frustration in dealing with someone. Likewise, used car and previously owned car have the same literal meaning, but many dealerships prefer the latter, since it is thought to have fewer negative connotations.
* It is often useful to avoid words with strong connotations (especially disparaging ones) when striving to achieve a neutral point of view. A desire for more positive connotations, or fewer negative ones, is one of the main reasons for using euphemisms.[1]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connotation
@George, USA
George my dear, there’s no need to be a condescending idiot in your tone of voice. It just reeks of the standard American pomposity.I like how your every response to anything pro-chinese is either:
- Paid for by the Commie Government
- Written by a brainwashed chinese person
- Using an English name
If only life was that simple for you eh? Then there’d be ‘us’ and ‘them’, and not a mixture of opinions from different backgrounds which you can’t possibly comprehend.
Anyway, to your three points:
“Security men look scary in any language and race to women.
That is their job.”
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Then why the lack of reference to the horde of police officers kitted out in black? Oh yes, they weren’t chinese looking.
It’s Hannah, by the way. Have some respect, “George”.
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Asian & oriental are synonyms in English “Jeff”.
“They mean the same thing.”
This is WORLD have your say, right?
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“The Chinese authorities are turning the Chinese population’s accomplishments to shame.
Kindly do not usurp the population’s hard work”
———–
Yes, tell me about it. Why ARE you “usurping the population’s hard work” by associating the Governmental policies with the people’s efforts?
Every country said the flame will be treated as ‘head of the state’, so what’s wrong that the hosting nation send those people to fulfill thie duty?
When Tony Blair came to China, did he only use local China security guard to protect him? I bet NOT! Can his Englsih secuirty people speak any Chinese, I bet NOT!
Another double standard!
— A chinese lives in UK