Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Chief Minister Jon Stanhope said on Tuesday he would not be ordering a bus to usher the Olympic torch past protesters in Canberra later this month but security was being reviewed.
He said the proposed Canberra route was being reassessed in light of chaotic scenes in Paris overnight and London the day before when protests disrupted the relay.
Stanhope told ABC Radio he hoped it would not come to that in Canberra on April 24 during the only Australian leg of the relay.
"I haven't got to the point of despairing that the relay won't be a wonderful celebration of the Olympic Games, the Olympic spirit," he said.
The torch will be carried through Canberra by five Australian of the Year winners as well as sporting and community identities.
But Stanhope says organizers of the Canberra leg were reviewing security arrangements.
"I met ACT Policing a week or so ago and the torch and security arrangements were being actively reviewed and updated on the basis of the most recent intelligence," he said.
There would be a very significant police presence on the day of the relay, but it may not require a wide cordon to keep protesters away, he said.
"We will be prepared. We will take the security measures that are necessary," the chief minister added.
(Xinhua New Agency April 8, 2008)