Malaysian police detained a Japanese family who unfurled a Tibetan flag just before the first runner took off with the Olympic torch yesterday, guarded by 1,000 policemen along the route.
Witnesses said the adult couple and a boy were heckled by bystanders, who appeared to be Chinese, at Independence Square where the 16km relay began.
More than an hour later, the president of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, Imran Jaafar, set off with the torch.
Thousands of Chinese — many of them wearing red — had gathered to watch the send-off. Some carried Chinese flags and Chinese language banners that read: “The Torch will spread around the world,” and “No one can split China.”
The witnesses said some of the bystanders, who included many students, shouted “Taiwan and Tibet belong to China” during the confrontation.
Witnesses said the family unfurled a pro-Tibet banner and shouted “Free Tibet.” They couldn’t recall the exact wording on the banner because of the commotion, and declined to be named, fearing involvement with the police.
Meanwhile, Japanese officials chose a new starting point for the upcoming Olympic torch relay yesterday after a temple pulled out over security concerns and sympathy for Tibetan protesters, officials said.
Nagano city officials will now start the Saturday leg of the relay at a city-owned parking lot, said Yuya Kobayashi at the city planning committee for the relay.
The new site is part of a government district about 800m southwest of the initial site and would not affect the distance of the relay or security planning, Kobayashi said.
“We were pressed for time but were able to find an alternative site nearby,” he said. “Fortunately, we hardly have to change our initial plans.”
On Friday, Buddhist monks at the centuries-old Zenkoji temple refused to host the start of the relay. Vandals over the weekend spraypainted the temple with white paint, though officials would not say whether the two events were related.
In Australia, more than half the police force in the capital Canberra will guard the Olympic torch when the troubled relay arrives in the city this week, officials said yesterday.
Security has been beefed up for Thursday’s run, which is expected to attract hundreds of pro-Tibet demonstrators angry at China’s treatment of the Himalayan region as well as thousands of supporters of Beijing’s hosting of the Games.
Steel barriers have been set up along Canberra’s streets for the 16km route that runs past Parliament House and near the Chinese embassy.
Meanwhile, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has met with organizers of the Olympic torch relay to be held later this month in Ho Chi Minh City to review their precautions for preventing demonstrators from disrupting the event, Vietnamese media reported yesterday.
Democracy activists on several Vietnamese Web sites have called for demonstrations along the route of the torch’s progress through Ho Chi Minh City, scheduled for April 29.
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