Olympic Flame Protectors are Tibet Death Squad!!

In another extraordinary piece of bad PR, the Chinese Government is employing the same unit that killed people in Tibet last month to guard the olympic flame.

 The Chinese guards of the Olympic flame seen fending off protesters in London and Paris are elite members of the paramilitary units which crushed dissent in Tibet, it has been disclosed.
Officially described as "volunteers" by Beijing, the 30 blue track-suited guards were recruited from specialist squads in the People’s Armed Police (PAP), a one-million strong force dedicated to maintaining public order.

The PAP has moved into Tibet and Tibetan-settled areas since the protests against Chinese rule began last month. It has been accused by Tibet support groups of opening fire on demonstrators.

The Free Tibet Campaign called on Britain to explain why PAP forces were allowed to take charge of the torch relay operation.

The hand-picked members of the "The Olympic Holy Flame Protection Unit" are all above 5ft 9in and underwent a rigorous training programme at the PAP special police academy in Beijing last August. Each has the rank of lieutenant apart from their commanding officer, a major, and each scored highly in military and "political tests" – the latter a euphemism for ideological training. "According to the customs of the past Olympic Games, the flame has to be given some protection measures," a spokesman said. "The mission of the attendants is to protect the safety of the flame."

But images of Chinese security forces directing operations on the streets of London have caused alarm. Lord Coe, chairman of the London Olympic Committee, was overheard by Channel 4 News saying: "They tried to push me out of the way three times. They are horrible. They did not speak English… I think they were thugs."

Konnie Huq, the former Blue Peter presenter who was in the middle of one fracas between protesters and the attendants, described how they shouted orders at her and pushed her arm to make her lift the torch higher.

"They were very robotic, very full on, and actually I noticed them having skirmishes with our own police and the Olympic authorities before our leg of the relay, which was confusing," she said.

Australia says that the flame attendants would have no role in the security operation when the torch passes through Canberra next Tuesday. "I have seen what occurred in London and I can tell you that type of security arrangement will not be occurring here," said Michael Phelan, the police chief of Canberra.

The guards, whose training was revealed by a Hong Kong newspaper backed by the Chinese government, had to pass a series of intense physical fitness trials, which included long-distance running and an obstacle course. They have also received extra tuition in subjects far beyond the scope of most police academies.

The classes included international manners and learning how to say "forward", "back", "fast", and "slow" in English, French, German, Spanish, and Japanese. They were also taught basic physics, including how to prevent a flame from going out.

There are a minimum of three attendants at all times. On board their specially chartered Air China jet, at least one must remain awake throughout the night, watching the "Olympic lanterns" that each contain a flame from which the torch is lit.

Their boss has been named by a government website as Zhao Si, though pseudonyms are sometimes employed to protect real identities in such circumstances. "These men, chosen from around the country, are each tall and large and are eminently talented and powerful," he was quoted as saying. "Their outstanding physical quality is not in the slightest inferior to that of specialised athletes."

Matt Whitticase, a spokesman for the Free Tibet Campaign, said: "It beggars belief that personnel from the PAP were allowed on to the streets of London at all, let alone that they were allowed to push the Metropolitan Police around.

"The British government must explain immediately who authorised this unit to scuffle with our own police and whether it knew they came from the PAP when they were authorised to escort the flame on London’s streets."

It’s too bizarre to believe!!! Here’s what my clone had to say about the London protests.

So why is this entry entitled “Proud to be British”? Well, because when the British protest they do so in unique and clever ways. The picture at the top of the entry is of protesters attempting to put out the Olympic Torch with a fire extinguisher!

Genius, pure genius. Makes me proud.