«Whatever happens, be it earthquakes, other natural phenomena, or any other events, I think it can have a psychological impact on foreign tourists who do not fully understand the true situation,» she said. Zhang Huiguang emphasized that Beijing «still invites tourists from all over the world.» According to official forecasts by Beijing's tourism bureau, about 500,000 tourists will visit the Chinese capital during the Olympic Games, which exceeds the figure for the same period last year.
2008 began in China with unusual cold and snowfall in the southern regions, then the world witnessed bloody riots in the Tibet Autonomous Region, after which a wave of anti-Chinese demonstrations swept through a number of foreign countries where the Beijing Olympic torch relay was taking place. As a result, the frequency of mentions of the PRC in foreign media in a negative context increased significantly. On May 12, a devastating earthquake shook the southwest of the country, which, according to the latest data, claimed the lives of more than 67,000 people.
According to experts, the negativity towards China decreased when the world witnessed a national tragedy caused by the strongest earthquake in the PRC in recent decades. But the image of the country, which will soon host the most grandiose sporting event in the world, is ambiguous in the eyes of the global community. China has involuntarily divided the world into supporters and opponents of the Games, those who support the Chinese authorities or accuse them of «human rights violations» and «cultural genocide in Tibet.»
Recall that the 29th Summer Olympic Games will be held in Beijing from August 8 to 24.