/bookmarks/olympic-protesting-what-about-those-protest-zones-beijing-beijing-blogs-beijing-olympics-city-weekend-guide Reading the report I felt that the researchers were wise not to press the issue of where in the zones protesters were meant to gather. Tue, 12 Aug 2008 10:17:32 +0100 Tue, 12 Aug 2008 10:17:32 +0100 en-uk <img alt="Wily Fox" src="/avatars/94/square/Fox.jpg?1251220121" /> <span class="mask">&#160;</span> Wily Fox said: <blockquote><p>Whilst clearly the zones are a thinly disguised paper exercise, that perhaps in some circles could be expressed as a sentence or two of an example of civil libertarian democracy, should they have been taken advantage of and petitioners and protesters HAD actually gathered in these places I have no doubt that the response would have been swift and quite possibly censored. <br />What is worse even applying for a spot in these places - a mountain of bureacracy to climb, may well have led to more 'disappearances'. The cumbersome state control that this form of pre-negotiated and moderated dissent represents is reflected in the UK - see FIT(watch) <a href="http://www.fitwatch.blogspot.com">http://www.fitwatch.blogspot.com</a> - I hope to read of at least some activists taking advantage of this narrow portal of freedom of speech. </p></blockquote> Wily Fox Tue, 12 Aug 2008 10:17:32 +0100 http://protectthehuman.amnesty.org.uk/bookmarks/olympic-protesting-what-about-those-protest-zones-beijing-beijing-blogs-beijing-olympics-city-weekend-guide#comment_161 http://protectthehuman.amnesty.org.uk/bookmarks/olympic-protesting-what-about-those-protest-zones-beijing-beijing-blogs-beijing-olympics-city-weekend-guide#comment_161