Friday's ceremony honouring this year's peace laureate, jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo, has angered China which has orchestrated a huge clampdown on dissidents and exerted pressure on other countries not to attend the Oslo event.

"It's unimaginable that such a farce, the like of which is more commonly seen in cults, is being staged on the civilised continent of Europe," the state-run Global Times said in a commentary.

"Tonight's political show is not an easy task for the Norwegians. They have to ignore the signs of China's drastic changes and social progress, in a bid to convince themselves that China's 'darkness' is real."

The editorial also described the ceremony -- which takes place on international Human Rights Day -- as a "farce that puts China on trial."

Liu was jailed for 11 years in December 2009 for subversion after co-authoring Charter 08, a petition urging political reform in China. As such, the government has denounced the prize as tantamount to encouraging crime.

Neither Liu nor his wife Liu Xia -- who has been under almost constant house arrest since the announcement of the prize two months ago -- nor other members of his family will be able to collect his award in Oslo.

Scores of activists and lawyers have also been prevented from leaving China in an apparent bid by authorities to stop them from attending the ceremony, and many are currently unaccounted for or under strict surveillance.

The official People's Daily newspaper said the Nobel committee was facing "an unprecedented embarrassment."

"Those gentlemen in Oslo may think that with the Nobel prize's fame and the support of some Western political forces, they will get a standing ovation. They are wrong!" it said.

The paper said more than 100 countries and international organisations supported China's position -- a stance repeated several times by the Chinese foreign ministry.

About 20 countries have declined Norway's invitation to Friday's ceremony, including China.

earlier related report
Nobel peace ceremony hails absent winner amid China fury
Oslo (AFP) Dec 10, 2010 - Exiled Chinese dissidents, ambassadors, Norwegian royals and other dignitaries will gather around an empty chair Friday to hail absent Nobel Peace laureate Liu Xiaobo in a ceremony that has enraged Beijing.

The empty chair for the jailed Chinese dissident "is a very strong symbol (that) shows how appropriate this prize was," explained Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland at a press conference on the eve of the ceremony, which kicks off at 1:00 pm (1200 GMT) in the Oslo city hall.

Friday marks only the second time in the more than 100-year history of the prize that neither the laureate nor a representative will be able to accept the award.

The only other time was when German journalist and pacifist Carl von Ossietzky, who was locked up in a Nazi concentration camp, could not travel to Oslo for his prize ceremony in 1936.

Like Ossietzky, who was a critic of the regime under which he lived, Liu has long been an outspoken opponent of Chinese leadership in Beijing.

The writer and former university professor was at the forefront of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

He was jailed in December 2009 for 11 years on subversion charges after co-authoring "Charter 08", a manifesto that spread quickly on the Internet calling for political reform and greater rights in China.

"I have long been aware that when an independent intellectual stands up to an autocratic state, step one toward freedom is often a step into prison," Liu said shortly after his sentence was handed down on Christmas Day.

"Now I am taking that step, and true freedom is that much nearer," he added.

Beijing was enraged by the Norwegian Nobel Committee's pick this year, which was announced in October.

The Chinese authorities labelled the laureate a "criminal" and placed his wife Liu Xia under house arrest.

And the Chinese authorities' fury has mounted in the run-up to Friday's ceremony, threatening "consequences" for countries that come out in support of Liu and lambasting the Nobel Committee as "clowns."

"The Chinese people and the overwhelming majority of countries and people in the world oppose what they do," foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said in Beijing a day before the event.

Nobel Institute director Geir Lundestad meanwhile pointed out Thursday that 45 embassies had accepted invitations to the event, while 19, including China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran, had initially declined.

On Thursday however Serbia and Ukraine, under pressure both at home and abroad, reversed their decision to boycott and said they were sending representatives.

According to Lundestad, the Philippines had also relented and would attend, although there was no confirmation from Manila.

Despite Beijing's best efforts, world leaders and foreign parliaments continue to laud Liu's achievements.

On Thursday, Mexico's upper parliamentary chamber, the senate, called on Beijing to free Liu and let him travel to Oslo to collect his prize, in a motion that was unanimously approved.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meanwhile defended himself Thursday against charges by human rights groups that he had not raised Liu's case with China's President Hu Jintao on a visit to Beijing last month.

Without directly mentioning the controversy, Ban said: "Often, we choose to speak out, loudly and publicly. Other times, a less public diplomacy may be the better path."

At home, Chinese media have largely shied away from covering this year's Nobel Peace Prize, while Beijing has cracked down on dissidents and worked hard to block its critics from travelling to Oslo.

A number of Chinese dissidents living in exile have nonetheless made the trip.

In addition to placing an empty chair on the podium to represent Liu, he will be remembered with a photograph and one of his texts read by Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann.

He will receive his gold medal, Nobel diploma and prize money of 10 million Swedish kronor (1.1 million euros, 1.5 million dollars) at a later date.

The laureates of the Nobel prizes for chemistry, physics, literature and economics will collect their awards at a separate ceremony in Stockholm later Friday.

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