China's time has come to stage the Olympics, said Beijing Mayor Liu Qi, adding the choice of host for the Games had nothing to do with politics or human rights.
In an interview carried in newspapers yesterday, Mr Liu, the president of the capital's bid committee, set out his case for awarding the Games to Beijing on the day members of an inspection team from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) began arriving.
The Beijing Hotel, where the visitors will be staying, was spotlessly clean, and the white-gloved staff nervous and attentive in line with the importance of the occasion.
At the entrance were parked the Buick cars decked with white flags that will transport the visitors. On Changan Avenue outside, Olympic flags and posters were flying, while uniformed and plain-clothes police watched attentively for signs of Falun Gong or other dissidents.
'The Olympic movement should have no political, religious or racial bias. We are absolutely opposed to those who use the excuse of human rights and other political issues to obstruct our bid,' Mr Liu said. He cited a letter by IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch to the inspection team that said it should consider only the ability of candidate cities to host the Games, ruling out political issues.
The 17 team members, six of whom are voting IOC members, will start their visit tomorrow and give a news conference on Saturday before leaving for a tour of other bidding cities.
'They should not consider political factors,' Mr Liu said. 'But each delegate has his own opinion and is free to judge these factors. This is not the first time this question has come up. It did in 2000 and also in 1980 when Seoul applied for the Games.'