Four foreigners, three men and one woman, were taken away by Beijing police on Wednesday morning for displaying a pro-Tibet independence banner in English, the police authority said.

According to police, the four people gathered at around 5:47 in the morning at the Beichen Bridge near the National Stadium, or Bird's Nest. Two men climbed up two electricity poles to display the banner.

The police rushed to the scene 12 minutes later and took away the four foreigners.

The four foreigners have entered China with tourist visas, the police said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 6, 2008)