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 07 September 2008 01:27 BST

UN head Ban Ki-moon to miss Olympics opening

Friday, 11 Apr 2008 19:48
Ban Ki-moon will miss the Olympics opening ceremony due to "schedule issues"
United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon is to miss the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, it has been confirmed.

UN spokeswoman Marie Bukabe said the decision was due to "schedule issues" that China has been made aware of.

The announcement follows the news that UK prime minister Gordon Brown will not attend the opening ceremony and will only take part in the closing ceremony.

"The secretary-general had conveyed to the Chinese government some months ago that he may not be in a position to accept the invitation to attend this important event due to scheduling issues," Ms Bukabe said.

French president Nicolas Sarkozy and German chancellor Angela Merkel are also set to miss the opening ceremony of this year's Olympics, whose build-up has been mired by protests against China's human rights record and its recent response to Tibetan protests.

Demonstrations took place in London, Paris and San Francisco as the Olympic flame passed through the cities, with protestors managing to extinguish the flame in the French capital.

Authorities in Buenos Aires are preparing for protests today as the flame is carried through the streets of the Argentine capital as part of its global tour.

Yesterday the head of the International Olympic Committee admitted that pro-Tibetan protests during the international torch relay have reached "crisis" point.

But Jacques Rogge insisted the Beijing Olympics would rebound from a week of demonstrations in London, Paris and San Francisco.
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