The Chinese government must be congratulating itself. It dazzled the world with the 2008 Beijing Olympics without following through on its promises to expand political freedom.

Illustrative of the political games played by Chinese was the case of the three areas set aside in Beijing parks as protest zones before the start of Olympics.

Seventy-seven applications from 149 people were received.

No protests were approved.

In fact, four Chinese people were detained just for applying. Two women, aged 77 and 79, were sentenced to a year in labor camp, the New York Times reported.

The Olympic Games as seen on television sets around the world were a glittering spectacle dominated by the Chinese athletes who won 51 gold medals, the most of any country. (Unlike the United States, most countries rank countries solely by gold medals.)

The “Bird’s Nest” stadium for track and field and the “Water Cube” for swimming events were triumphs of imaginative architecture.

Opening and closing ceremonies were colorful, fast-paced pageants that were astounding in the precision of their choreography. Tellingly, the director of the show, Zhan Yimou, said, “I don’t think any other country in the world, apart from North Korea, could get such a quality of performance from its actors.”

In other words, only an even more repressive country could have equaled the achievement.

That’s exactly the sort of sentiment that worries human rights advocates. “Will anyone wonder, after the games are over, why the Chinese government remains intransigent about human rights?” Sophie Richards of Human Rights Watch asked rhetorically.

China’s rulers are intent on proving that political autocracy can be combined with a free-market economy.

The Olympic Games reinforced the global impression that China’s dictatorial leaders are succeeding impressively in the attempt. The Games also were a device for boosting Chinese national pride and strengthening the hand of China’s leaders.

In charge of the Games was Vice President Xi Jinping, viewed by many as a possible successor to President Hu Jintao. His resume was bolstered as the Olympics progressed smoothly and stunningly.

The thousands of athletes that gathered in China for the Olympic Games are now returning to their homes around the globe.

But the hard-liners in the Chinese government who organized the games will remain, their hold on power tighter than ever.