IOC calls for end to violence in Tibet

By Karolos Grohmann

ANCIENT OLYMPIA, Greece (Reuters) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) called on Sunday for a swift end to violence in Tibet but said its primary role was to deliver "the best possible" Olympics in Beijing this year.

Stung by criticism that the IOC was doing too little to pressure Beijing to improve the country's human rights record ahead of the Games in August, IOC president Jacques Rogge said the Olympics would help change China.

"The IOC has already expressed the hope that this conflict should be resolved peacefully as soon as possible," Rogge said in a statement hours before arriving in ancient Olympia for Monday's Olympic torch-lighting ceremony.

"Violence for whatever reason is contrary to the Olympic values and spirit."

Exiled Tibetan activists have pledged to demonstrate in Olympia on Monday.

"We believe that China will change by opening the country to the scrutiny of the world through the 25,000 media who will attend the Games," Rogge said. "The Olympic Games are a force for good. They are a catalyst for change, not a panacea for all ills."

Beijing has been widely criticized following a security crackdown after protests in Tibet in the past two weeks, a region China has occupied and ruled since a 1950 military invasion.

Unrest in Tibet began when Buddhist monks demonstrated in the capital, Lhasa, on March 10, the 49th anniversary of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, and on subsequent days.

Five days later anti-Chinese rioting shook the city. Chinese authorities said one policeman and 18 civilians have been killed.

Anti-government protests then flared in nearby provinces with large ethnic Tibetan populations, leading to violence in which several people were killed and many injured.

Human rights groups and other organizations have called for a tough stance against Beijing and even a Games boycott.

"The IOC respects non-governmental organizations and activist groups and their causes, and speaks regularly with them but we are neither a political nor an activist organization," Rogge said. "The main responsibility of the IOC is to deliver the best possible Olympic Games to the athletes, who deserve it."

(Writing by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by John Mehaffey)