International visitors to Beijing during the Olympics willbe impressed by the “Bird's Nest” Olympic stadium, the millions of flowers adorning the streets of China's capital and the freshly repainted fa?ades of its buildings. What they may not realise is that all this represents the power of the state. In the run-up to the games, the government has mobilised unimaginable resources to make its capital a shining symbol of its success. Missing in this picture is China's civil society: non-governmental organisations have been conspicuously absent in the preparations.
北京給奧運期間到訪的國際人士留下深刻印象:奧運體育館「鳥巢」,街道上數以百萬計的裝飾性鮮花,新粉刷的建築物外立面。他們也許不會意識到,這一切都代表著中國的實力。在奧運會籌備階段,政府動員了難以想像的資源,將首都北京打造成中國成就的、耀眼的象徵。這幅畫卷裏缺失的是中國的公民社會(civil society):在籌備階段,非政府組織明顯缺席。