Activists split over protests for Paralympic Games torch stop in Vancouver

One group says they're not ruling it out, while another says the Paralympic Games torch relay has no connection to the issue of Tibet and should not be the target of protest.

Worldwide protests with a focus on China's treatment of Tibet have dogged the torch relay for the 2008 Beijing Games as it has travelled around the world, but it made no stops in Canada.

For the Paralympic Games, only three international stops are being made - Vancouver, London and Sochi, Russia, all sites of upcoming Olympics.

The proposed route for the Canadian leg of the relay will see it travel to Whistler, B.C. and from Vancouver's city hall into Chinatown over two days in late August.

"We will certainly take any opportunity to drive home China's human rights but it's depending upon both the timing and also how the talks between the government of China and representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama are going at that point," said Dermod Travis of the Canada Tibet Committee's intentions to protest the torch.

"We'd obviously consider what would be the most appropriate form of demonstration."

Earlier this month, representatives of the Dalai Lama, the spiritual and political leader-in-exile of the Tibetan people, began talks with China.

China considers Tibet part of its territory, while the Dalai Lama and thousands of others consider the country an independent nation that deserves autonomy.

Activists accuse China of a harsh crackdown on the rights of Tibetans as they've agitated for greater independence and the announcement that Beijing's Olympic organizers planned to take the torch through Tibet was seen by them as an effort by the Chinese government to white-wash its record there.

There are also fears that the torch's trip through Tibet will exacerbate an already tense situation and lead to further unrest. Protests have been taking place in the region since March.

But the Paralympic Games and its torch relay have nothing to do with that, said Tsering Lama, the director of the Canadian chapter of Students for a Free Tibet, the driving force behind many of the worldwide protests.

"For us, it's really about a direct connection to the Tibet issue and how can we bring the Tibet issue to the forefront and make the Chinese government pay attention to us," she said.

"We don't feel the Paralympics is something that is either appropriate or even directly connected to the issue. This is not something we are looking into or have ever looked into seriously."

Organizers of the Paralympic torch relay say they're also not concerned about protests during the quick tour.

"My sense is that people recognize that this is an event about hope and inspiration, healing and citizenship and contribution," said Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan.

"I don't think there is a lot of sympathy from the public in disrupting an event of this kind."

The relay's international leg marks the first time a Paralympic torch has made a stop outside the host country, organizers said.

Since the Paralympic torch relay can't begin until after the Olympic Games have ended, organizers are limited to a 10 to 12 day window to run the torch and so usually keep it home, explained Brian MacPherson, the chief operating officer of the Canadian Paralympic Committee, which is helping organize the event with the City of Vancouver.

"We were taken a bit by surprise last fall when we got an invitation from Beijing organizers about this torch relay going international," he said.

"But that was nice."

The route proposal will be put before city residents at an open house event later in May.

Twenty people from Whistler and 40 from Vancouver will serve as torch bearers, MacPherson said.

He said the committee is hoping to strike a panel of prominent Vancouver and Whistler residents to supervise the selection of torch bearers.

Members of the public will be able to apply through community organizations as well as online.

Security for the route will be provided by both local police and the RCMP.

MacPherson said organizers will prepare for the worst when it comes to protest but hope for the best.

He said the goal of the Paralympic Games is to bring increased awareness and social development around the rights of people with disabilities.

"We have noticed that the Chinese government has done a number of things to improve the programs, services and the laws around Chinese people with disabilities in that country over the last number of years," he said.

"And that's a good thing."