BEIJING, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- The art performance
during the opening ceremony of the Beijing Paralympics was amazing and the
special care that the hosting country provided to the disabled athletes was more
impressive, Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao said in an editorial Wednesday.
Following the success of the summer Olympics, China
once again promoted the hosting standard of the Paralympics to a new high, said
the editorial.
Compared with the Olympics, authorities of the host
country paid the same amount of attention to the Paralympics, and in some
aspects, the preparations and arrangements were even more careful, considerate
and human.
The paper believes that China was using the
Paralympics as a showcase window to convey the Chinese government's and
society's respect and attention for the disabled people.
It cannot be underestimated that these qualities have
influences on the reality of Chinese society in view of China's large disabled
population, the editorial added.
The Netherlands national news agency, or ANP, said
the opening ceremony of the Paralympics delivered a message that every single
life is meaningful and valuable.
"On the opening show I couldn't keep quivering for
several times not only because I was nervous to be the flag holder of the Dutch
delegation but also because of the grand scene," the news agency Monday quoted
Dutch wheelchair tennis player Esther Vergeer as saying.
Metro, a Dutch paper, said Monday that many details
like restaurant menus for blind people and lifts for people in wheelchairs in
the subway all warm the hearts of the disabled athletes.