A SENIOR Roman Catholic bishop has provoked a political row by comparing the Beijing Olympics to the Berlin Games held under the Nazi regime.

Joseph Devine, the Bishop of Motherwell, branded the Chinese government an

“inhuman regime” and “ruth-less dictatorship” comparable with Adolf Hitler's Third Reich. “Not since the 1936 Berlin Games in Nazi Germany has the Olympic Games been held in a country where arbitrary executions, imprisonment without trial, secret surveillance by security forces, torture and persecution have been so brutally perpetrated by the regime in power,” he said.

Devine added that the Games would be used for propaganda by China's communist rulers to “propagate lies to disguise their inhuman regime”.

“Let us use that same tool to expose them for what they are - ruthless dictators who have committed the most evil atrocities not only against their own people but who have been implicitly involved with murderous regimes in Darfur and Burma,” he said.

Devine also accused the Chinese government of “state-sponsored” killings in Tibet, which he said they had “turned into a prison”.

The bishop's comments, made in a statement made encouraging people to stage peaceful protests against the event, have prompted outrage among the Chinese community in Scotland and provoked condemnation from politicians.

Dr Ya Ping Wang, director of the Scottish Centre for Chinese Urban and Environmental Studies at Heriot-Watt University, said the bishop had gone too far.

“Statements like this will hurt not just the Chinese government, but the normal people in China. [The Nazis are] the worst thing to be compared to,” he said. “This shows a lack of understanding for what is really going on in China. Great improvements are being made. I was in Beijing last month and people have an air of confidence about them and feel free to discuss political issues.

“The Olympic Games will be a great thing for the country and will really help with its development.”

Jim Devine, the Labour MP for Livingston and himself a Roman Catholic, said the bishop's comments risked damaging relations between the UK and China.

“Any concerns on human rights should be made in a much more subtle manner. Nazi Germany embarked on a campaign of ethnic cleansing the likes of which the world had never seen before. There's is no comparison with that and China,” he said.

“This is a very unhelpful contribution to the debate on the Olympics which will have an impact on people throughout the UK.

“China is going to be one of the leading players, if not the leading player, in the world in the not too distant future and it's important that we build a dialogue with the country.”

Last month, Bishop Devine accused gay campaigners of staging “a huge and well-orchestrated conspiracy” against Christian values. He claimed that gay rights organisations had attended Holocaust memorial services to project an image of “people under persecution”.

The Olympic torch relay, which visited Paris and London earlier this month, has sparked waves of protests around the world from Tibetan exiles and human-rights campaigners.

Gordon Brown has said he will not attend the opening ceremony in Beijing but will attend the closing ceremony instead. The French president Nicolas Sarkozy has threatened not to attend the opening event.

The Dalia Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, speaking on a visit to America last week, urged protesters to demonstrate peacefully.

Last week campaigners urged Andy Murray, the Scots tennis star, to condemn China's record on human rights when he competes at the Beijing Games.

Campaigners said Murray should use his position as Britain's most high-profile athlete at the event to highlight the plight of the people of Tibet.

Mike Pringle, the Liberal Democrat MSP and chairman of the Scottish parliament's cross-party group on Tibet, said that Murray should boycott the opening ceremony.

“I would encourage him to come out and make a statement and say that he is appalled at what's going on,” said Pringle. “If somebody like Andy Murray said something, it would resonate with young people and make them sit up and take notice.”

Amnesty International said a statement from Murray would “make a big difference”.

Last week, a spokesman for Murray said: “Andy is very proud to be representing Great Britain at the Beijing Olympics. He is a tennis player, not a politician, and hopes he can win a medal for his country.”

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