Eight US protesters released

Eight Americans jailed for holding peaceful protests were deported during the Olympics closing ceremony.

Security guards drag away a protester wearing a t-shirt with a "Free Tibet" slogan in Beijing last week. Security forces dragged away US pro-Tibetan protesters who chained their bicycles to the gate oShow more

Eight Americans jailed for holding peaceful protests were deported yesterday during the Olympics closing ceremony, the US Embassy said. The action came just hours after the Embassy urged their release and expressed disappointment that the Games had not brought greater tolerance and openness to China. A British and a German protester were also released from detention, according to British and German diplomats and American activists.

During the early stages of the 17-day Olympics, China routinely questioned and quickly deported foreign protesters. But since the departure of most of the 100 or so foreign heads of state the line has hardened and activists are being held for prolonged periods. Most of those detained were stopped by police while mounting small-scale protests over Chinese policies on Tibet and human rights, including those just deported.

Phelim Kine, a Hong Kong-based researcher with Human Rights Watch, said China's switch to a more punitive approach before backing down under pressure suggested that it felt emboldened by the international community's apparent acquiescence to its methods. China has received high marks for its stadiums and detailed preparation for the Games. The marked difference between the way China and most Olympic hosts view peaceful protests, however, was seen in Beijing's failure to approve a single protest at three designated zones set up in local parks.

China, which keeps a tight lid on any domestic complaints, was almost certainly pressured to set up the zones by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). IOC president Jacques Rogge said at a news conference yesterday that the Olympic games had helped open up China, although he expressed surprise that Chinese officials had not approved a single protest. Human rights groups and relatives said some of the Chinese who applied fr protest permits were arrested. State media said most of those who turned in the 77 protest applications saw their complaints addressed, obviating the need to grant permits. The claim could not be confirmed, and some international rights groups have called the zones "a sham".

Separately, Eddie Perez Romero, the La Puente, California pastor who painted Bible verses and anti-Beijing slogans on the walls of upscale hotel rooms just before the Olympic games opened, was detained yesterday after shouting protests in Tiananmen Square, according to Tony Thomas, his spokesman in La Puente. His whereabouts is unknown, Mr Thomas added. Romero has been demanding that Beijing free five political and religious prisoners and sign a UN human rights accord.

"We're working with Chinese authorities to confirm his status", Susan Stevenson, press attache with the US Embassy in Beijing said today. "While we do not condone Mr Romero's methods, the US government supports his underlying message that calls for greater freedoms in China." Under Chinese law, detainees can be held for up to 14 days for minor offences. The IOC has also come under criticism for failing to ensure Beijing lived up to its commitments on foreign media freedom and unfettered internet access as a condition for winning the rights to host the Olympics.

The US Embassy met with the eight detained Americans on Friday, it said in a statement, adding that the following day Ambassador Clark Randt pressed the Chinese government for their release. The detainees said they had not been mistreated, the Embassy added. The US Embassy said that the eight released Americans ? James Powderly, Brian Conley, Jeffrey Rae, Jeff Goldin, Michael Liss, Tom Grant, Jeremy Wells and John Watterberg ? were deported aboard a China Air flight last night to Los Angeles. * AP