(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-04-15 07:37

China supporters gathered yesterday on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada, on Sunday. China News Service

OTTAWA: Thousands of Chinese Canadians gathered on Sunday on Parliament Hill here to show their support for the Beijing Olympics and express their dismay at Tibetan separatists and bias in some Western media reports.

During the three-hour rally the protestors made speeches and sang patriotic songs, including China's national anthem, which was performed many times.

Members of the crowd, some dressed in red T-shirts featuring a map of China and the words "One China, One Family", shouted chants such as: "No riots", "No distortion", "Do you know the true Tibet?", "Don't mix sports and politics", "We want our home in one piece".

The crowd called on Canada's mainstream media to avoid biased reporting and help the public see "the real Tibet", as well as the truth about China as a whole.

Local resident Jeffrey Liu, 29, said: "I'm here for the love of our nation and to cheer for a peaceful games with no politics."

The protestors also voiced their opposition to attempts to break up China.

"We don't want anyone separating our country," Ling Wang, a 30-year-old medical researcher who lives in Toronto, Canada, said.

Harry Yang, 35, who lives in Toronto, Canada, said he was disappointed by the way some Canadian newspapers reported on the Lhasa riots of March 14. The rioters were referred to as "peaceful protestors" and the Chinese government's efforts to restore order were denounced as a "crackdown".

Sue Ma, 34, from Montreal, Canada, was also upset about the media reports about Tibet.

"Friendship is being fair and uniting and embracing the future, for the whole world," she said.

"We need to be building bridges between Canada and China. That is why we are on Parliament Hill today."

According to Dan Wang, 35, of Montreal, Canadian journalists should visit China to get a better understanding of the country.

"They need to go to China and make contact with Chinese people," he said.

Waving the flags of China and Canada, the protestors called on Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to strengthen the Sino-Canadian relationship.

They also pledged to help sustain the strong bond between the two countries.

Huang Xingzhong, leader of the Chinese community in Ottawa, said: "China is our motherland and Canada our newly adopted home.

"We are proud of Vancouver hosting the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. We are equally proud of Beijing as the host of this year's Summer Games.

"We want peace, we want the Beijing Olympics to succeed."

The rally, one of the biggest demonstrations by Chinese Canadians in 50 years, included Chinese-Canadians from across the country.

About 50 buses and more than 200 cars journeyed from Toronto and some people flew to Ottawa from the western coastal city of Vancouver.

Xinhua

(China Daily 04/15/2008 page7)