Beijing: Olympic torch plans unaffected by Tibet riots

Preparations for the torch relay in the region, including a planned ascent of Mount Everest were "proceeding very smoothly and according to schedule", Sun Weide, a spokesman for the Beijing organizing committee (BOCOG), said in a statement.

Sun said the organizers opposed the linking of any political campaigns to the Olympics in August, amid renewed calls from some quarters to boycott the games.

"BOCOG opposes any attempt to politicize the Olympic Games because that runs counter to the very spirit of the Olympic Games," he said.

"We have been receiving tremendous support from the international community for the Olympic Games," Sun said.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge said a boycott would "solve nothing" and merely punish "innocent athletes" who were counting on the Beijing Olympics to go ahead.

His remarks on the Carribbean island St Kitts came after IOC vice-president Thomas Bach of Germany said earlier that a boycott of the August 8-24 Games was not the right measure.

"A boycott would be the wrong way because it would cut off talks," said Bach. "History has shown that boycotts do not lead to results."

Bach said he hoped for "a peaceful solution (in Tibet) through dialogue "and added that "violence is always a setback."

The statements of Sun and Rogge came a day after violence in Lhasa left at least 10 people dead, according to Chinese state television. The Tibetan government-in-exile said unconfirmed reports spoke of 100 people killed in the pro-independence protests.

Chinese authorities on Saturday deployed troops and tanks in Lhasa, demanding that Tibetan rioters surrender to police or face more serious punishment for the violence.

Human rights groups have in recent months urged the IOC and governments to act tough on the issue towards China. The Tibet incidents could spark boycott calls.

China is restricting trips by foreign tourists and climbers to Everest before the Olympic torch relay to the summit of the 8,844-metre peak in early May, sources said earlier this week.

It has also asked Nepalese authorities to suspend climbing on the south side of Everest during the expected May 1-May 10 window for the summit ascent with a special high-altitude, wind-proof Olympic torch.

China's restrictions remain opaque but some tour operators said this week that all climbing activities were cancelled and that foreign tourists would not be allowed to travel to Everest Base Camp during the torch relay.

Tourists and climbers embarrassed China's ruling Communist Party, which claims Tibet is an "inalienable" part of China, in two separate incidents close to 5,200-metre Everest Base Camp last year.

Video footage taken in June by Romanian mountaineers showed a Tibetan collapsing onto snow after apparently being shot by a Chinese soldier as a group of Tibetans climbed one of the high passes on China's border with Nepal.

The video provided rare first-hand evidence to back claims by Tibetan activists of brutal repression in the region by Chinese troops and police.

In late April, China deported five US citizens who staged a brief protest to support Tibetan independence at Base Camp.

Deutsche Presse-Agentur