Li, however, said that the Olympic decision is bad news for Taiwan's pro-independence forces.
"Many Taiwan businesspeople will invest more in China. Many Taiwan people will probably emigrate to China, mainly Shanghai. So, It's really very bad news for those people who are pro-independence. China does not need the use of force to marginalize those pro-independence forces," he said.
Other reactions around the world included press watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres in Paris which called for a boycott of the 2008 games.
"The vote ... is a terrible blow for the millions of Chinese who are victims of repression by a regime that executes, tortures and imprisons on a massive scale opponents and defenders of individual freedom," it said.
And the Paris-based International Federation of Human Rights Leagues said the vote for Beijing contravened the fundamental principles governing the IOC.
"The Olympic Games ... cannot get away from the universal standards and values on which the international community is based -- universally recognized human rights," it said.
British newspapers yesterday homed in on the human-rights principles at stake. The Times said the decision puts Beijing on notice that its approach to human rights will be closely watched, while The Guardian warned that so far neither China's Olympic bid nor its burning ambition to join the WTO has had much effect on attitudes towards rights at home.
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