Stockholm - Sweden appears to be split over the issue of a possible
boycott of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony, according to a survey
published on Wednesday.

While 46 per cent of Swedes surveyed
said they opposed a boycott of the opening ceremony, 41 per cent backed
such a stance with the remaining 13 per cent undecided, the Novus
Opinion poll commissioned by broadcaster TV4 said. Around
1,000 people were surveyed.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said Tuesday he opposed a boycott of the opening ceremony on August 8.

Reinfeldt
said that already when the International Olympic Committee (IOC)
awarded Beijing the games, China was a one-party state without free
elections and where human rights were violated.

At the end of this week, Reinfeldt was due to visit China and then Japan for talks on energy, climate change and trade.

Opposition
leader Mona Sahlin of the Social Democrats cited recent events in Tibet
as a reason for why she favoured a boycott of the opening ceremony.

"If
the Olympic Games were held today with the violations that occur in
Tibet now, I would absolutely demand a political boycott of the opening
ceremony," Sahlin said.

In a related development, Finnish
Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, attending a summit of Nordic prime
ministers in northern Sweden, said he had "not made a decision but in
principle opposed mixing sports and politics."

Vanhanen said he planned to make his decision this summer. (dpa)