The Olympic flame returns to Chinese soil after a fractious 6-week tour
around the globe

HONG KONG, CHINA (APRIL 30, 2008) POOL -

 The Olympic flame touched down on Chinese soil on Wednesday (April
30, 2008) arriving in the special administrative region of Hong Kong after a
fractious 6-week tour around the globe.
    Hong Kong's Secretary for Home Affairs, Tsang Tak- shing, greeted the
flame enclosed in a box on the tarmac of Hong Kong's modern airport along with
Yang Shu -an, executive vice president of the Beijing organising committee for
the Olympic games and several other officials including Go Si ren, director of
the liaison office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong and Timothy
Fok, head of the Hong Kong Olympic committee.
    A marching band played, while school children waved flags in hazy
sunshine.
    An eight hour torch relay through crowded Hong Kong city streets, on a
traditional dragon boat and through the city's Olympics equestrian venue will
take place on Friday (May 2.) amid heavy security.
    Various human rights groups and democracy advocates and expected to
demonstrate along the torch route, but authorities have barred at least half a
dozen activists from coming into the city in a bid to control the scene.
    Some three thousand police will guard the torch during the relay with
police officials warning they will not tolerate any violence and that flying
the Tibetan flags during the torch relay might be an offence.