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Two British graduates responsible for an audacious pro-Tibet demonstration on the eve of the Olympics returned home yesterday promising that theirs was the first of a wave of protests.
Lucy Fairbrother, 23, and Iain Thom, 24, were deported after Mr Thom, an experienced climber, scaled a 120ft (35m) pylon outside the Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing on Wednesday morning and unfurled a giant banner reading: “One World, One Dream, Free Tibet.”
As the pair arrived back at London City airport to be welcomed by family and supporters, Ms Fairbrother, originally from Cambridge, said: “We are only a very small part of this campaign and the ongoing struggle. There will be more protests.”
Mr Thom, who grew up in Muir of Ord, near Inverness, said: “It was definitely all worth it but expect there to be more. The job is not done.”
Ms Fairbrother hugged her mother, Linda, a former broadcast journalist, amid a scrum of press and pro-Tibet activists. “I'll be diving straight back into it as soon as possible,” she said. “The Olympics are three weeks where we won't get much sleep. We've been preparing for this moment since Beijing got the Olympics so it's not one we're going to miss.”
Mr Thom said that he had smuggled climbing gear and materials for the banner into China in his suitcase.
“Airport security was tight but the equipment I brought in was standard climbing equipment,” he said. “We bought the banner in Britain, and we took it in blank and made it there.”
The pair were held by the Chinese for 12 hours before being escorted to the airport for a flight to Frankfurt, where they boarded another to Britain.
Ms Fairbrother said that they had planned the protest for early in the morning as there were fewer security staff. “We came to the pole in the early morning when there weren't many guards around. A policeman arrived about half an hour later and radioed for more officers to come.
“The police were good. They realised that we were non-violent. It stayed calm the whole way through.”
The police interrogation, which lasted about five hours, was “scary”, Ms Fairbrother said. “At one point there was a senior policewoman that was quite agitated and shouted at me. The interpreter translated quite calmly, saying, ‘My colleague wants to know who made the banner'. There were lots of surreal moments.”
Ms Fairbrother works as a researcher for Eurim, an independent think-
tank that aims to further the use of IT in policymaking. Its chairman is Margaret Moran, a Labour MP. Her father, Jeremy, is a former banker at Barings who later became bursar at Trinity College, Cambridge. “I'm pretty uninteresting,” Ms Fairbrother said. “I don't recognise myself in half these papers as a ‘millionaire's daughter'. It couldn't be further from the truth.”
Two Americans, Phill Bartell and Tirian Mink, who carried out a similar protest, were also deported. They were flying to San Francisco.
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To the people who criticise the actions of the protestors I would ask what are you doing for a Free Tibet? To those who say they have ruined the Olympics, a non-political event I say, nonsense !
Well done for standing up for a free TIbet1
John Scovell, Redhill , Surrey
Ms Fairbrother said. At one point there was a senior policewoman that was quite agitated and shouted at me.
its clear that this twit doesnt speak mandarin-so doesnt understand its tonal-ie you raise and lower your voice to speak-not in anger.and to get angry is to lose face.
stay at home kid.
fraser, singapore, singapore
Whilst I'm not saying that they don't have a point (I'm sure it's perfectly valid and should be listened to), scrounging off an event like the Olympics is, in my eyes, a crime in itself.
204 countries have gotten together for this occasion. Athletes have trained hard. It's not a place to showboat.
Greg, Bristol,
I totally disagree with any governments brutality. I cannot help but sense hypocrisy in this matter. Iraq involves BRITISH hypocrisies. Clean ones own house first.
David Pong Chong, Orange County , USA
Nothing courageous about their protest, since they weren't going to be imprisoned. All they've got for their troubles is a permanent ban from China. They arent going to be much use now because they wont be able to personally monitor the situation nor help the Tibeteans.
SAm, Auckland, New Zealand
I think one thing has been forgetten here, Lucy actually went to Tibet and what she saw drove her to get involved in the campaign for free Tibet.
We are not Chinese, we are Tibetan.
We have nothing against Chinese people, pls leave us alone.
Dechen, London,
Tibet had to enter into unequal treaties with China. The Chinese knows the feeling well: China was occupied by the Great powers and forced to hand over Taiwan to Japan and Hong Kong to Britain. The Chinese still remember with great resentment, the brutal occupation by the Japanese in WWII.
kayler, Birmingham,
I admire their courage in speaking out against Peking's treatment of its subject peoples.
robert leQuesne, Melton Mowbray, Leics, England
These people are not brave. What a meaningless demonstration - it achieved absolutely nothing but insult the entire Chinese population at the height of their nationalism, detract from what was supposed to be a non-political event, and embarass the organization they claim to represent.
Jasmine, London,
The important point should be what the Tibet people want- SELF DETERMINATION and not how long China has or has not ruled it.
If Dalai Lamas following is just a Clique, then the Chinese government will have nothing to fear. Let him go back to his Potala palace to be ignored by the Tibetans.
kayler, Birmingham,
More Tibetans live in other Chinese provinces than in Tibet. There are 2m in Tibet. In 59 there were 1m. So according to the Dalai Lamas claims, 1 out of every 3 Tibetans must have been killed since 1959.
This is quite clearly not true.
James NYC is right. The feudal system was brutal.
Mike Gow, Beijing, China
The Chinese feel so strongly that Tibet is part of China. this includes many Tibetans.
China has 56 ethnic groups. All have freedom of religion.
While I admire the passion, these children are brainwashed with liberal ideals. They just do not understand the whole situation in China.
Mike Gow, Beijing, China
as your rules northen ireland should be independent
us should be separate after civil war
wa, wenxi, china
China might be still ruled by the Communist Party, but the government policies are hardly communist these days. For once, you are free to earn as much money as you like. How's that communism? More like capitalism to me.
Alasdair, Shanghai,
Well done by four BRAVE people!
Nate, Yarmouth, USa
Tibet has been part of china since 1271. Tibet was invaded by the british in india in 1908. then tibet became a theocracy and had a feudal system where many tibetans were owned by their lords. Tibet shouldn't be ruled by communism, but
selfdom,feudalism and theocracy are no better.
james, NYC, USA,