Zhang Yimou (left), director of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympic Games, speaks at a press conference in Beijing yesterday, as Cui Dalin, deputy sports minister, looks on.

Beijing's preparations for the Olympics are in overdrive, with the appointment of a state-level agency to ensure security and the decision to rope off more than 280 kilometers of roads exclusively for the Games.

The security agency groups the Ministry of State Security, the Ministry of Public Security and the armed forces, Beijing Vice Mayor Liu Jingmin said in the capital yesterday, 149 days before the start of the August Games.

China has also drafted plans for emergencies during the event, enhanced liaison with foreign security organizations, and stepped up training for security staff as well other people involved in the Games, said Liu, also executive vice president of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad.

He said security is a major consideration in the construction of Olympic venues and the new terminal at Beijing Capital International Airport.

"We believe security will be ensured during the Beijing Olympic Games," he said at a press conference on the sidelines of the First Session of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

To ease traffic woes in a city with 17 million people and more than three million registered motor vehicles, Beijing will copy Sydney's and Athens' practice to separate Olympic traffic from others, said Liu.

In addition to the 280km of special lanes, Beijing will also follow other successful international experiences to impose traffic bans.

Beijing tested a traffic ban from August 17 to 20 last year, removing 1.3 million automobiles every day from its gridlocked streets in accordance with the even and odd numbers on license plates. The test reduced traffic on main roads and exhaust emissions by 30 and 40 percent respectively.

During the Games, some vehicles from other provinces may have to bypass Beijing. "This, however, will not apply to trucks bringing food supplies to Beijing," Liu said. The city has completed construction of 37 of the 38 Olympic venues and 44 of the 45 Beijing-based Olympic drill facilities, he said.

Meanwhile, participants in the Games, domestic and foreign, should abide by Chinese laws, Liu said.

People must apply to the city police to hold demonstrations and decisions will depend on these laws.

"We don't want to see a grand gathering of athletes across the world turned into a political show which violates the Olympic spirit," he said.

It's lights, camera and, well, silence

Zhang Yimou is China's most famous film director, but he's never faced an editing job like this one: boiling down 5,000 years of Chinese history into 50 minutes for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.

"Fifty minutes is not enough time to feature the quintessence of a Chinese culture that has been running for 5,000 years," Zhang said yesterday, speaking publicly for the first time about the August 8 Olympic curtain-raiser.

Zhang is the director general of the opening and closing ceremonies. He dropped just a few clues about the ceremonies, which are already being rehearsed with a cast expected to reach 10,000.

"If you know all the details about a movie, you will lose interest before the preview," said Zhang, who said he has signed a confidentiality agreement.

Famous for using red in his films, Zhang said the color was sure to light up the opening ceremony, which will last about 3 1/2 hours. His major fear is that rain might ruin opening night.

He said if there is heavy rain, contingency plans call for "performances in the air and high-tech" presentations to be cut back.

Zhang said his goal was to top Athens' opening night, which he called "an amazing show."

Editor: Yan