U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has warned China not to use
legitimate security concerns as an excuse to crack down on dissidents.
At
a joint news conference with New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark in
Auckland Saturday, Rice said China should showcase not just the
Olympics, but an attitude of openness and tolerance.
Neither Rice nor the prime minister expressed any concerns about the safety of U.S. or New Zealand athletes.
Global
intelligence analysts Stratfor and Intelcenter said Friday that a
Uighur separatist group, the Turkestan Islamic Party, has claimed
credit for several attacks, including the May 5 Shanghai bus
bombing that killed two people.
The Internet intelligence
analysts said the Islamic group threatened further attacks on Chinese
cities that will host Olympic games.
The Turkestan Islamic Party
is an ethnic Uighur and Muslim group seeking to create an independent
state out of China's westernmost, heavily Muslim Xinjiang province.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
