BANGKOK (AFP) — Thai officials said Friday that the Bangkok Olympic torch relay would go ahead as planned, after more controversy erupted when a Japanese host dropped out in protest over China's crackdown in Tibet.
The torch, whose worldwide journey before the Games in August has turned into a public relations debacle for China's leaders, made its way to the kingdom overnight from India, where many people were arrested.
Thai officials have warned they will deport foreigners who try to disrupt the relay but, unlike at several previous stops, Thailand has not made plans to shorten its leg of the flame's globe-trotting extravaganza.
"There is no reason to disturb the ceremony. This is purely a sporting issue. On Saturday, we will fulfil the 10-kilometre (six-mile) run," Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej told reporters.
"I have instructed the authorities to implement decisive measures (against disruptive protesters)," he added.
Senior Bangkok police officer Major General Surachai Vanichseni said that at least 2,000 uniformed and plainclothes police would be deployed throughout the route. An undisclosed number of soldiers will also be on guard.
The torch has been dogged by protesters since it was lit in Greece last month, kicking off the countdown to the Olympic Games that China's communist rulers hope will showcase the nation's much-touted "peaceful rise" to power.
Instead, a crackdown on demonstrations in Tibet has put the spotlight on China's heavily criticised record on human rights -- and ignited demonstrations at many of the torch's previous stops, notably London and Paris.
Jacques Rogge, head of the International Olympic Committee, has said the protests have thrown the Olympics into "crisis," and reminded China that it pledged to improve its rights record when it proposed to host the Games.
Beijing has told Rogge to stay out of "irrelevant" politics and insisted the demonstrations are not in keeping with the Olympic spirit.
But it received another snub on Friday when the Buddhist temple that was to host the ceremony to begin the relay's Japanese leg pulled out.
Officials at the temple in the city of Nagano -- host of the 1998 Winter Olympics -- said it would no longer host the starting ceremony out of concern over the situation in Tibet.
Demonstrations against China's rule in the Himalayan region spilled over into violent unrest on March 14.
Exiled Tibetan leaders say Beijing's suppression of the rare protests left about 150 dead. China meanwhile says only that Tibetan "rioters" killed 20 people.
On Thursday, hundreds of protesters were reportedly arrested in India and Nepal, while the heart of New Delhi was sealed off for the torch relay, with police and soldiers far outnumbering the few onlookers.
China has ruled Tibet since 1951, after sending in troops to "liberate" the region a year earlier.
The latest crackdown has increased attention on China in the run-up to the Games, which begin in the Chinese capital on August 8.
China's close ties to the government of Sudan, blamed for years of strife in Darfur, and its treatment of domestic critics and activists have also been fodder for demonstrators.
The flame arrived in Thailand in the early hours of Friday, and was ferried to a hotel in Bangkok, where it will be kept until the relay takes place on Saturday afternoon.
Thailand's Crown Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn hosts a dinner Friday for the 80 Thai torchbearers -- a mix of business people, sports stars, sponsors and environmentalists.
But the Olympic flame will not be on hand.
"We told them that we should bring the torch there so that the guests can observe it," said General Yuthasak Sasiprapha, president of Thailand's Olympic committee.
"But the (Chinese) delegates said they preferred to keep it at the hotel for security reasons."
A coalition of human rights and student groups are planning a demonstration outside Bangkok's UN headquarters on Saturday.
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