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At a press conference on March 28, the Beijing Organizing
Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG) launched
recruitment drives for volunteers coming from Hong Kong, Macao,
Taiwan, the overseas Chinese diaspora and from foreigners around
the world. All those who wish to join and serve the Olympics and
lend the volunteer body a veritable global character are invited to
apply.
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Li Binghua, executive vice president of BOCOG and vice chief of
the Beijing Olympic Games Volunteer Work Coordination Group, said
that the volunteers recruitment in each of the above areas would
benefit from its own agency. For Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, the
Hong Kong Home Affair Bureau, Macao Sport Development Board and
Beijing Olympic Games Taiwan Compatriot Volunteer Recruitment
Center will respectively oversee volunteer recruitment in these
areas. For overseas Chinese and foreign applicants, the Beijing
Olympic Games Overseas Chinese and Foreign Volunteer Recruitment
Centers will field all applications.
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Starting from March 28, applicants outside the mainland can use the
following websites to contact the relevant organization:
Hong Kong: www.hab.gov.hk
Macao: www.sport.gov.mo
Taiwan: www.bjtx.org
Overseas Chinese: www.bjqb.gov.cn
Foreigner: www.ebeijing.gov.cn
Volunteer consultancy hotline: (00 86) 10-12308
The application period will last a year until the end of March
2008, with BOCOG aiming to complete recruitment by May 2008. The
number of volunteers will stand at 70,000 for the Olympic Games and
around 30,000 volunteers for the Paralympic Games.
According to Liu Jian, office director of Beijing Olympic Games
Volunteer Work Coordination Group, the number of volunteers
recruited from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, overseas Chinese, students
studying abroad and foreigners may vary depending on application
demand.
For the duration of their stint at the Olympics, the volunteers
will be required to shoulder the cost of transportation from their
place of residence to Beijing and accommodation during their stay
in the city.
"The volunteer program for the Beijing 2008 Olympic and
Paralympic Games has attracted widespread attention and support
from people from all walks of life. The recruitment for volunteers
in Beijing began in August 28, 2006 before spreading to the rest of
the mainland on January 2007. So far, 410,000 applicants have been
received with over 280,000 coming from Beijing and 130,000 from the
rest of China," said Li Binghua.
In addition to 100,000 venue volunteers, about 2,000 city
volunteer service stations will dot around Beijing
including?key transportation points, business centers, scenic
spots, hotels, hospitals, clinics and cultural facilities.
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Basic Requirements for Volunteer Applications
1) Agree to serve the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic
games;
2) Born prior to (but including) June 30, 1990, and in good
health;
3) Abide by China's laws and regulations;
4) Able to participate in pre-Olympic trainings and related
activities;
5) Able to work for over seven days running during the Olympic and
Paralympic Games;
6) Native Chinese speakers should be able to communicate in foreign
language(s), and applicants whose mother-tongue is not Chinese
should have Chinese-language skills;
7) Possess professional knowledge and skills as required for the
positions.
(China.org.cn by staff reporter Wang Qian, April 2007)