This may well worsen grievances among their inhabitants and strengthen pro-independence sentiment in both regions.įor all the good cheer generated by the gold medals, the party is clearly nervous of the slightest challenge to its authority.
Security has been particularly intense in Tibet and neighbouring Xinjiang. But many complain about the impact that stringent security precautions and tightened visa restrictions for foreigners have had on business. The gold-medal haul (51 compared with America’s 36 and 23 for Russia) will boost national pride. Less clear is whether the games will pay the kind of political dividends that China had hoped for domestically and abroad. Mr Xi took charge of preparations for the games, a move apparently aimed at demonstrating the importance the party attached to them (officially a lower-ranking Politburo member, Beijing’s party chief, Liu Qi, remained the top organiser). The games were his first big political test since he emerged as China’s leader-in-waiting after a Communist Party congress in October last year. Vice-President Xi Jinping, at least, has reason to celebrate.
But the impression given was of little expense spared. Chinese officials say the infrastructure had to be built anyway and that spending was in line with that of previous host cities. But China’s secretive budgeting system makes it impossible to verify these figures. Beijing also spent $40 billion on preparing its infrastructure and cleaning up the environment. The easiest way is to purchase them online by clicking the EventBrite button below, otherwise you can text 0414 035 377 or there maybe some tickets at the door.Officially the games cost $2.2 billion, compared with an original estimate of $1.6 billion.
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