Japanese temple refuses to host torch ceremony
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Nagano City has also changed the starting point of the relay route. (Reuters: Radu Sigheti)
A Japanese Buddhist temple has reportedly pulled out of plans to host a ceremony for the Olympic torch relay because of concerns over Tibet.
Jiji Press reports Zenkoji Temple, a landmark in Nagano City which hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics, cited China's crackdown in Tibet for the decision, which has forced the city to change the starting point of the relay route.
The city asked the temple last autumn to host the starting ceremony.
"We fondly accepted the plan," a local official said, noting the temple had rung bells for the opening ceremonies for the 1998 Nagano Games as well as for the 1964 Tokyo Summer Olympics.
"But the situation has changed. Monks here are very concerned."
"We shared a strong feeling that we are the same Buddhists as Tibetans," an unnamed Zenkoji monk who took part in Thursday's meeting was quoted as saying.
Zenkoji was built in the seventh century and draws 6 million visitors every year.
The early stages of the torch relay in London and Paris were overshadowed by demonstrations against Beijing's crackdown on protests in Tibet. The third stage in San Francisco was drastically curtailed.
Tibetan exiles in India say more than 150 Tibetans have been killed in China's crackdown on the protests against its rule of the Himalayan region. Beijing says Tibetan "rioters" have killed 20 people.
The torch will travel through 21 cities between Greece and mainland China. It will arrive in Canberra next week, then go to Nagano.
- AFP