In this aerial photo reviewed by the Chinese military, the Olympic Green is seen in Beijing, last Saturday. At right centre is the National Stadium, known as the Bird's Nest, and at left is the National Aquatics Centre, known as the Water Cube. The Bird's Nest will host the opening ceremony and athletics competition at the Beijing Olympic Games, which opens on Friday. The Water Cube will host the swimming competition. - AP photos

China bent under international pressure led by the United States and allowed access to some blocked Internet sites on the weekend.

A few sites, including the BBC Chinese language news and human-rights watch groups Reporters Without Borders and Amnesty International, had been restricted.

Chinese President Hu Jintao announced last Friday during a rare press conference with the foreign media that access was being restored to the sites.

He said the government would be working on lifting a ban on others.

The New York Times quotes Olympic Committee official Kevan Gosper as saying, however, that sites which are considered subversive or pornographic may remain blocked.

That includes sites which were related to unrest in Tibet, advocating for Taiwanese independence and the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

"You'll always find sites concerning pornography closed, subversive sites or sites that might jeopardise national interest," Gosper is quoted as saying.

"That goes with the turf and varies from country to country."

The Chinese government had promised it would enable free access to all sites during the 2008 Olympic Games being hosted in Beijing, but last Tuesday when some foreign journalists arrived in the city, they found that some sites were still blocked.

Tibetan exiles hold placards and wear a black band on their mouths as they protest against the Chinese government and the Beijing Olympics outside the Chinese embassy in Katmandu, Nepal, yesterday.