Thousands of supporters took to the streets of Hong Kong to celebrate the return of the Olympic torch to Chinese soil as Friday's torch relay went off with minimal disruption from protesters.
There were small groups of pro-Tibetan activists and human right protesters and they were heckled by the overwhelmingly pro-China crowd.
"When (activists) tried to unfurl a Tibetan flag they were quickly surrounded. One Chinese supporter called them 'running dogs, traitors and a shame to their country,'" CTV's Beijing Bureau Chief Steve Chao told Canada AM Friday.
"When the mob began to grow, police took the flag and put the Tibetan supporters in a police van for their own protection."
But Chao said some are questioning whether police did this for the safety of the activists, or to silence dissent.
At least one arrest was made.
The government has been criticized this week after it was learned that some Tibetan supporters, including two Canadians, were denied entry into Hong Kong.
"It just makes me wonder whether Hong Kong still has any room for people who have kind of a different political view from the central government at all," Christina Chan, a pro-Tibet activist, who was removed by police during the mayhem.
A local politician says China has suppressed democracy in Hong Kong since taking control of the island from Britain in the late 1990s.
"Why have they not yet kept their promises of introducing democracy," asked Martin Lee, a member of the Hong Kong legislature.
Despite the tensions, the relay went smoothly under a light drizzle. Unlike previous runs in Paris or London, no protesters actively tried to interfere with the torch itself.
"For the most part there was a sea of red, as tens of thousands of supporters lined the 33-kilometre route. Many people were very proud of the fact that China is hosting the summer Olympics," Chao said.
There was also a few Olympic firsts for the torch run, as the Olympic flame was carried on horseback and by dragon boat.
Actress Mia Farrow, who was allowed into Hong Kong, held her own torch during a speech urging China to stop the violence in Sudan's Darfur region Friday.
She has called on China to allow UN peacekeepers into Darfur, where more than 200,000 people have died since 2003.
"Beijing is singularly positioned to persuade Khartoum (Sudan's capital) to cease the regime's assault upon Darfur's population" given its strong business ties to Sudan, she said.
China is one of Sudan biggest trading partners, buying oil from the African nation and selling it weapons.
