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China offers Taiwan chance to co-host
BEIJING (AP) -- Swelling with confidence over a glowing International Olympic Committee evaluation, state media Wednesday stirred enthusiasm for Beijing's bid to host the 2008 Summer Games. A sports official said China might petition to let Taiwan host some events if it met certain political conditions. "Olympic report affirms Beijing," said a headline in the popular Beijing Morning Post above a story about Tuesday's IOC report placing Beijing among the top three candidate cities. "IOC report gives Beijing reasons to be optimistic," the English-language China Daily said on its front page. Taiwan, which China claims as a breakaway province, would have to accept Beijing's "one-China principle," as a precondition for hosting some Olympic events, said Yuan Weimin, head of the State Sports General Administration. That principle states Taiwan and the mainland are all part of China. Beijing insists it is the sole legal government of all China. "With the permission of the IOC, there is some possibility for Taiwan to hold some events under the principle" of one-China, the China Daily quoted Yuan saying. China has mentioned the possibility of sharing the games with Taiwan before under those political conditions. Taiwanese officials have said they would be willing to take up the offer as long as China does not politicize the games. Taiwanese officials are extremely wary of Beijing's one-China principle because Taiwan, one of Asia's most vibrant democracies, insists it is a legitimate government in its own right and does not want to be lumped together with repressive China. In Lausanne, Switzerland, Chinese Olympic officials said they were more confident than ever of winning after the IOC's technical evaluation of bid cities rated Beijing as "excellent." Other bidders Paris and Toronto received the same rating, while Osaka and Istanbul found themselves left behind. But Osaka and Istanbul officials said they would continue their push right up to the IOC vote in Moscow on July 13. Olympic bid officials in Beijing said they would have no additional response. Aided by massive financial and propaganda support from China's Communist government, Beijing has proposed a massive facelift for the Olympics. An investment of some $20 billion will add 22 new gymnasiums and stadiums along with vast swathes of green space. The bid also has huge popular support among Chinese, who see hosting the games as affirmation of their country's rise to prominence and offering the chance to erase the bitter disappointment of losing out narrowly to Sydney in the running to host the 2000 Summer Games. China has also touted the success of its athletes at the Sydney Games as an indication of the country's enthusiasm for sport and ranking among the top sporting nations. China's gymnasts, table tennis players and shooters took 28 golds in Sydney to place third behind Russia and the United States. The last attempt to win the games was dogged by concerns over human rights abuses and the bloody 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing. This time, Chinese officials have gone on the offensive against those who argue China's record on human rights should disqualify it from hosting the games, accusing them of discriminating on political grounds in violation of the Olympic spirit.
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