Protecting the nest
Monday, 7th July 2008 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
China has been pulling out all the stops to make next month's Olympics in Beijing – and several other cities – go according to script. Aside from the usual massive building projects associated with the Games, China has also seriously tightened its visa policy, saturated its citizenry with Olympic propaganda and denied foreign media direct access to most Chinese athletes.
It should be no surprise that in terms of security, Beijing is doing all it can to impress upon domestic and international audiences that all is under control. Chinese media reports recently highlighted the deployment of Hongqi-7 surface-to-air missiles (pictured above), which are located near the National Stadium aka the Bird's Nest and will be poised to take out any airborne threats during the Games.
According to a People's Daily report, Western media including AFP and Reuters were given a front-row seat to deployment of said missiles. The report continues:
"The outside world generally believes that although the threat of China's domestic terrorist, extremist, and separatist organizations differ to a degree, we can rest assured that under the protection of such security forces as the People's Liberation Army, the security of the Beijing Olympic Games will be maintained."
Terrorist, extremist and separatist organizations are not the only groups being targeted by the Chinese government. Even cults are being targeted. The image below was taken last week in a residential area in the city of Kunming in China's southwest.
The text above the frolicking fuwas reads: "Oppose cults, welcome the Olympics"
Missile image: clzg.cn
Tags: Bird's Nest, cults, Olympics, People's Liberation Army, security, terrorism, visas