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During the opening ceremony, Brunei was excluded from joining the event because it failed to register its two participating athletes on time. Brunei’s suspension angered many Bruneians who couldn’t believe the country’s Olympic Committee missed the deadline to register their two athletes in the swimming and track and field events.
Another controversy was the “improper” waving of the Singaporean flag during the opening ceremony. The flag bearer of Singapore made the mistake of dragging the country’s flag on the floor. According to Singapore law, "No person in possession of the Flag shall allow or cause the Flag to touch the floor or ground.” Many Singaporeans accused the flag bearer of not showing enough enthusiasm while performing her duty during the parade.
Adding to the controversy was the fact that the flag bearer was not born and raised in Singapore. Li Jia Wei, Singapore’s flag bearer, is originally from China and migrated to Singapore a few years ago. She is recognized as among the world’s best table tennis players. Because of the flag-dragging incident, Singaporeans on the Internet are questioning her loyalty. Was she paid by the government to migrate to Singapore and win an Olympic gold medal for the country?
Singapore is not the only Southeast Asian country which hired foreign talent to compete in the Olympics. The Philippines has also fielded several athletes who were born, educated and trained in other countries.
Is it unlawful to send foreign athletes to the Olympics? It is not wrong if a person wishes to change his or her citizenship. An athlete can decide to represent another country as long as he or she is sincere in promoting national pride, sportsmanship and the Olympic spirit. But if the hiring of foreign talents is a desperate measure to win gold medals, it becomes less acceptable.
Are Southeast Asian countries desperate to win gold medals? Since the start of the Olympic Games more than 100 years ago, Southeast Asian countries have only won 51 medals overall. The Philippines gave Southeast Asia its first Olympic bronze medal in 1928. Singapore hasn't won another medal since it got a silver medal in the 1960 Olympics. Thailand and Indonesia are the only countries in the region that have won Olympic gold medals. Indonesia has been winning gold medals since 1992. Thailand won eight medals in the 2004 Athens Games -- three golds, one silver and four bronze.
Southeast Asian governments have been increasing the financial incentives for successful Olympians. Malaysia and the Philippines will give more than US$300,000 to athletes who bring home gold medals. But cash rewards are not enough. Critics assert that the failure of the Philippines to win a gold medal in the Olympics is a reflection of the poor sports program in the country. There is no effective program that involves millions of people to excel in sports and develop the mania for physical fitness.
Most of the TV viewers in the region were impressed by China’s preparation for the Olympics. A Malaysian writer expressed pride in China and Asia for the “awesome, fantastic, bombastic, acrobatic, out of this world opening ceremonies.” Another commentator praised China’s decision to change the traditional parade of athletes since it sent a message that China is ready to make its own rules for the world to follow. Many Asians are of the opinion that China hosted what is undoubtedly the best Olympic opening ceremony in history.
The Beijing Olympics has been politicized from the start. Activists have launched a boycott campaign to highlight China’s poor human rights record. A Singaporean writer praised and criticized China’s hosting of the Olympics:
“It's great to see a fellow Asian country putting up such a wonderful spectacle, but as the Chinese spent millions to make sure their Olympics is a success, I can't help but think about the millions of people in Darfur who are suffering because of the Chinese continued sponsoring of the genocide there. China may have staged the greatest Olympic opening ceremony ever but they have to look at themselves for assisting in the death of hundreds of thousands of people thousand miles away.”
But others insist the Olympics should be “a celebration of sports and not a bad brew of politics." As the debate rages on, the games have begun. Malaysia pins its gold medal hopes on its badminton players, the Philippines on its boxing and swimming athletes, and Singapore on its table tennis star. Congratulations to Thailand for winning a gold medal in weightlifting.
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(Mong Palatino is an activist, regional editor for Southeast Asia of Global Voices Online and news editor of Yehey!, a Philippine-based Web portal. He can be reached at mongpalatino@gmail.com, and his Web site is www.mongpalatino.motime.com. ©Copyright Mong Palatino.)
