Monday 2 November 2009

The Vancouver Olimpdicks, zombies and other shiny flaming objects.


Luna, who posts at Feminist Christian Socialist and who was the first Progressive Blogger to break the story about the alleged serial rapist Fernando Manuel Alves and the shameful plea bargain brokered at his criminal trial, writes about Jack'o'Lanterns and the Olimpdicks flame, in Pumpkin Pi and other FAIL.

As it turns out, the NO 2010 Victoria organization held quite a clever and effective protest that disrupted the Olympic flame event. This is a BabelFish translation of the news item, originally in French as it appears that only AFP reported the demonstration.

Canada: demonstrators make the Olympic flame deviate off its course

VICTORIA - Some 250 young people disguised in zombies, opposed to the exorbitant expense of the VOG disturbed the relay of the Olympic flame Friday evening in Victoria [...] A peaceful demonstration was held to a few hundred meters from the provincial Parliament of Colombia-British and where the flame had left for a tour 45.000 km and 106 days through Canada.

“We walked randomly in the streets, we did not have a pre-established route but we succeeded in disturbing the course of the flame, it was a victory”, declared Mélanie Sylvestre, one of the spokespersons of NoVictoria 2010, attached to the movement anti-capitalist Olympic network resistance, which is opposed to the Olympic Games of Vancouver 2010.

“We denounce through this walk of the zombies the budgetary cuts which were made by the governments federal and provincial in the fields of health, employment and the fight against poverty, whereas millions were spent for the organization of the relay of the flame with Victoria”, added the young woman, a local farmer.

Covan admitted in an official statement having had to modify the course of the flame because of the great group of demonstrators. During four hours, framed by the police force, the demonstrators ravelled in the streets of Victoria, strongly disturbing circulation by stressing “Not justice, not peace for people in the street” or “Not with the Olympic Games on the ground stolen to the autochtones”.

eh. Isn't that translation something?
This news item gives an overview of the range of protests that was organized in opposition to the VOG Torch Relay event. It's in English English, not BabelFish English.

1 comment:

Luna said...

Thanks! God knows I can use the hits. ;)

I was pleased that they managed to peacefully disrupt it. You should have seen the media coverage of it all. Not cool at all. Everyone they showed was whining that the protesters ruined their evening out with the kids. Bleh.

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