The participation of a Chinese soldier, involved in a 2020 Sino-Indian clash in the Himalayas, in the route of the flame of the Beijing Winter Olympics sparked the anger of the Indians on Wednesday.
Qi Fabao, commander of a Chinese People’s Liberation Army regiment, was present in 2020 during a violent high-altitude clash in the Galwan Valley on the Sino-Indian border.
The fight, in this border area coveted by the two countries, took place on the night of June 15 to 16, 2020, causing the death of at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers, the Chinese authorities having taken eight months to recognize their losses.
Chinese state media Global Times described Qi as a “hero, as he was seriously injured in the head during this battle. As such, he was chosen to be one of the 1,200 Olympic torch bearers.
“China’s aggressive information war continues,” Indian journalist Abhishek Bhalla tweeted on Wednesday.
Qi’s participation in the Olympic Torch Relay is “anything but a sign of relaxation”, according to Indian news site The Wire. Especially since Qi appeared last December on the Chinese state channel CCTV to announce that he was “ready to return to the battlefield”.
The Beijing Games open on Friday but they are already weighed down by the resumption of the Covid-19 pandemic and political positions.
The United States and several other countries have implemented a diplomatic boycott of these Games, highlighting Chinese policy on human rights, particularly in the province of Xinjiang where the minority of Uighurs is located.
Skier Arif Mohammad Khan is the only Indian athlete registered in these Winter Games where the number of spectators will be limited by health protocols.
