Torch faces S.Korea protests, festivities in North

[Joanne98]

Source: Reuters

SEOUL (Reuters) - Protests and scuffles greeted the Olympic flame as it began a two-day journey on the divided Korean peninsula on Sunday along a route guarded by thousands of riot policeman wielding shields and truncheons.

Thousands of Chinese wrapped in their country's flag shouted, "Come on China", "No politics, only Olympics" at the start of the torch relay in Seoul where they greatly outnumbered South Koreans protesting Beijing's human rights record.

At one point, the two groups clashed with Chinese students kicking an elderly South Korean protester and hurling rocks at a group that raised banners chastising Beijing.

The torch relay in South Korea began at a park used for the 1988 Seoul Olympics and followed a 22-km (14-mile) route kept secret until the last minute.

The global torch relay ahead of the Beijing Games in August has prompted protests against China's human rights record in Tibet as well as patriotic rallies by Chinese who criticize the West for vilifying Beijing.



Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSSP11894820080427