Protesters block torch relay San Francisco sees thousands of supporters and protesters gather for afternoon Olympic torch relay
Miro Cernetig , Vancouver Sun Published: Wednesday, April 09, 2008
SAN FRANCISCO -- The Olympic torch relay, meant as a moment of sporting glory, descended into farce today as security broke down and the relay became a game of hide and seek with protesters.
Thousands of people - a minority of them anti-China protesters - had lined the streets, hoping to see the Olympics "eternal flame" on its only stop in North America. But police and Olympic officials changed the route at the last minute when crowds were able to cross barricade and flood into the streets, blocking the original route.
"China lies, Tibet dies," protesters chanted. Pro-China spectators, often waving massive Chinese flags and coming within inches of their opponents, hurled back their own slogans: "Tibet is better now than it was before without China."
But things didn't get much better during what police called "the decoy plan," designed to avoid violence.
Police put the torch in a bus and took it to another street a few kilometers away, in a hide-and-seek game with protesters. The torch runners, who were guarded by baton-wielding police in combat -style fatigues, were then deposited along the near empty street.
They runners carried on with what they had learned in rehearsal, trotting along the street and waving to the crowds. There were, however, in most cases only a handful of people on the curb, surprised by what they were seeing.
"What the heck is this?" one man told a local radio station. "It's all quiet one moment and now we've got this chaos."
Pro-China protesters were delighted with the change, claiming a victory over the protesters.
"These people who hate China should not be listened to," said Sammy Ng, who waved a large Chinese flag in
the crowd. "I did not see the torch. But I'm happy we helped make this a success."
But the protesters were incensed at the official attempts to keep them away.
Even with a near empty street, however, there were unexpectedly glaring lapses in security. At one moment, unsuspecting pedestrians crossed in front of the torch motorcade, causing it to stop. Security personnel could be heard yelling, "move this thing faster, faster."
People on the street were also taken aback by the sudden appearance of the torch on their street and in some cases came within metres of the prized Olympic symbol, held back by only the thin line of police officers with batons. Often, the 40 torch bearers were forced to stop or slowly walk.
Eventually, however, the protesters eventually caught up to the the torch's new run. They began to try and shove the Tibetan flag into the proceedings and the official footage being shot of the torch run. Police blocked them and in some instances tackled a few and dragged them and their flags away.
The final embarrassment for the Olympic torch relay was the closing ceremony for the relay, the only one in North America, had to be cancelled. Thousands waiting in a city square were out of luck. The torch was taken up to an empty freeway, where the relay came to a standstill, as police scrambled to pick another site to end the Olympic flame's North American run.
While city officials claimed victory because there was no major outbreak of violence, there were some serious downsides for San Francisco.
Much of downtown San Francisco was thrown into chaos today. The city known for its history of protest was turned into a place where officials attempted to thwart them in getting international coverage for their causes.
The International Olympic Committee is now expected to analyze the San Francisco relay and decide whether the torch's 85,000-mile run should go on.
mcernetig@png.canwest.com
Pro-Tibet protesters gathered ahead of the Olympic torch relay in San Francisco on April 9, 2008.
The Olympic torch relay in San Francisco, California, began today at 1:00 p.m. PDT (UTC-7). It was the only stop for the torch in the United States, as it makes its way around the world to Beijing, China, for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

The route for the torch was materially altered as protesters filled the streets along the planned route. The route, which was originally 10 kilometres long, was shortened by nearly half, according to the San Francisco Police Department. In hopes that all eighty of the scheduled torch carriers would get a chance to carry the torch, the carriers ran in pairs.

The first torch carrier ran as scheduled, but then carried it into a warehouse, from which a motorcycle was observed leaving. The torch was then spotted again on a major street nearly two miles off course.

The rerouting was carefully planned, according to San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who told ''Associated Press'', that it was because of "a disproportionate concentration of people in and around the start of the relay."

The closing ceremonies were held at San Francisco International Airport instead of the planned waterfront location at AT&T Park.

Matt Helmenstine, 30, a California high school teacher carrying a Tibetan flag told Reuters: "I think it's cowardly. If they can't run the torch through the city, it means that no one is supporting the games."

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing for us to see the torch," said Nancy Chan, a local resident, to the ''San Francisco Chronicle''. "There is a lot of politics around it, but that is the great thing about America - the free speech." She and her 4-year-old son ran to the new route when it was announced.

Protestors filling the street in San Francisco. 
At least one protester was arrested, Xiao Tan, 32, of Chinese origin, who tried to unfurl a Tibetan flag. "I'm proud to be Chinese, but I don't like what's happening in Tibet," he told AFP. The ''Vancouver Sun'' reported a number of arrests, but says that violence is limited.

Peter Ueberroth, the chairman of the United States Olympic Committee, said that the right balance had been reached, between preserving freedom of speech for protesters, while still providing an exhilarating experience for torchbearers, as well as preventing a repeat of the chaotic demonstrations that accompanied the torch in London and Paris.

Already Tuesday evening, hundreds paraded with Tibetan flags while chanting "Shame on China". On Monday, protesters hung banners from the Golden Gate Bridge. As the torch went to London and Paris, the torch relay was subject to large scale protests in both cities.

Tight security was planned in advance. Airspace restrictions have been put in place and over 700 security personnel are expected to be deployed including FBI agents. Police leave was cancelled. The United States Coast Guard patrolled the part of the route that was to take the torch along the waterfront at Fisherman's Wharf.

"We are trying to accomplish two goals here. One is to protect the right to free speech and the other is to ensure public safety, and here in San Francisco we are good at both of those things," said Nathan Ballard about the security. Ballard is a spokesperson for San Francisco Mayor's office.

"I am saddened that such a beautiful symbol of the torch, which unites people of different religions, different ethnic origin, different political systems, cultures and languages, has been attacked," said Jacques Rogge, the president of the International Olympic Committee, to the ''Wall Street Journal''.

The Beijing Organizing Committee said in a statement on Monday: "We strongly condemn the actions of the few 'pro-Tibet independence' activists who have attempted to sabotage the Olympic Torch Relay. The Olympic flame belongs to the world and these actions are a serious violation of the Olympic spirit. They are bound to fail and will surely arouse the resentment of peace-loving people who support the Olympic Games."