Second weekend of protests begins in China
Saturday, April 16, 2005
Defying government warnings against further demonstrations, as many as twenty-thousand Chinese protesters turned out for a second weekend of anti-Japan demonstrations in Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Tianjin.
In Shanghai, a crowd broke many windows at the Japanese consulate, according to Kyodo News. The crowd also busted up a Japanese restaurant and set its sign on fire. The protesters then attacked a convenience store, according to the Los Angeles Times.
At the Japanese consulate, the crowd chanted "jia ru, jia ru" asking the police to "join us". The police did not arrest the protesters, and stood by watching as the demonstration proceeded. The police permitted the protesters to throw eggs and rocks. Although the police provided at one point a sign which read "March route this way," state-controlled media denied that the protesters had been given permission for their demonstration.
Protests spread to Hangzhou and Tianjin
editSouthwest of Shanghai, in the city of Hangzhou, an estimated ten thousand protesters demonstrated against Japan, repeating recent demands for a boycott of Japanese products.
"Chinese people are angry," student protester Michael Teng told Associated Press. "We will play along with Japan and smile nicely at them, but they have to know they have a large, angry neighbor," Teng said.
In Beijing, Tiananmen Square was largely quiet as security tightened in anticipation of tomorrow's visit by Japan's foreign minister, Nobutaka Machimura. Hundreds of police are guarding both Tiananmen Square and the Japanese embassy.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Friday seeking to reassure Japanese citizens and businesses operating in China.
"The Chinese government has attached great importance to the situation and has kept on urging the public to express their appeals in a calm, sane, law-abiding and orderly manner and to avoid extreme activities," Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan said in a press release issued on Friday.
Reaction from Japan
editAs the protests continued in China, Japan lodged a "strong protest" against China.
"We cannot but say that the security system in Shanghai is insufficient," Machimura told reporters.
Despite the protests, Machimura announced that he is not cancelling plans to meet with China's foreign minister Li Zhaoxing on Sunday to discuss Sino-Japanese relations.
"China has been increasing its regional economic and political influence," Robert Broadfoot, managing director of Political & Economic Risk Consultancy Ltd. told Bloomberg from Hong Kong. "Japan doesn't want to have its position in the region dictated by China. Japan is adopting a more assertive policy, and China is trying to block it," Broadfoot said.
On Friday, the Japanese government warned its citizens in China to keep a low profile during the protests.
Related stories
edit- "China calls Japan's gas drilling plan 'a serious provocation'" — Wikinews, April 14, 2005
- "Anti-Japan protests spread to more Chinese cities" — Wikinews, April 10, 2005
- "Chinese rioters storm Japanese embassy in Beijing" — Wikinews, April 9, 2005
- "Chinese protesters smash up Japanese market" — Wikinews, April 3, 2005
- "UN Reform: China, South Korea question seat for Japan on Security Council" — Wikinews, March 23, 2005
Sources
edit- "Japan issues strong protest to China over anti-Japan rallies" — Kyodo News, April 16, 2005
- Ralph Jennings and Naoko Aoki. "Demonstrators break windows at Japan consulate in Shanghai" — Kyodo News, April 16, 2005
- Ben Blanchard and Benjamin Kang Lim. "Thousands Hold Anti-Japan Protests in China" — Reuters, April 16, 2005
- Christopher Bodeen, AP. "New Anti-Japanese Protests Erupt in China" — ABC News (US), April 16, 2005
- Don Lee. "10,000 Chinese Join in Protest" — Los Angeles Times, April 16, 2005
- "Anti-Japan Protesters March on Consulate in Shanghai (Update7)" — Bloomberg, April 16, 2005
- Peter Cave. "Japan warns expats over anti-Japanese protests" — ABC Online, Australia, April 16, 2005
- "Japanese reassured of security in China" — Xinhua, April 15, 2005