![The Thai leg of the torch relay set off amid tight security on Saturday [AFP]](http://mwcnews.net/images/stories/Asia/Thai/1/2/Thai-torch.jpg "The Thai leg of the torch relay set off amid tight security on Saturday [AFP]") | | The Thai leg of the torch relay set off amid tight security on Saturday [AFP] |
Thailand's leg of the Olympic torch run has begun, with hardly a sign of the protests that have dogged the relay's international progress.
The first of 80 Thai torchbearers set off from Bangkok's Chinatown on Saturday, with the flame guarded by more than 2,000 police and security officials, after a brief ceremony.
Thousands of people had gathered to welcome to the flame, with Thai dignitaries and the Chinese ambassador giving brief speeches praising their countries' friendship.
Many in the crowd of onlookers, which included a large number of tourists, carried Chinese and Thai flags.
"We reaffirm our position that we clearly separate politics and sport. Thailand is ready to organise the torch relay peacefully and orderly," Sanan Kachornprasart, Thailand's deputy prime minister, said at the ceremony.
A Western woman carrying a picture of the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, was at the scene and reported as the sole dissenter.
Olympic protest At the UN headquarters, 3km from the torch's starting point, about 60 pro-Tibet protesters gathered waving banners reading: "Free Tibet," "Stop Killing in Tibet" and "No Torch in Tibet."
They were matched by about 60 pro-Chinese protesters in red T-shirts, waving the Olympic flag and shouting "China, come on!" and "Olympics, come on!"Police separated the two groups.
Authorities are trying to keep the relay free of the protests that hit the London and Paris legs earlier this month.
Thai police have warned they will arrest, prosecute and deport any foreign nationals breaking the law to protest Beijing's human rights record.
The torch arrived in Thailand on Friday, escorted by Chinese security officials, on a charter flight that landed at a military airport outside Bangkok.
The next stop on the torch's journey is Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital.
There authorities will deploy an elite police squad, alongside 1,000 police officers, to protect the torch, Malaysia's The Star newspaper reported on Saturday.
Recommend this article...
Tags: Olympic torch Thai relay
|
