Japanese purchase of Diaoyutais met with 'people's war'
Staff Reporter 2012-09-12 16:10 (GMT+8)
A Chinese protester tramples Japan's flag outside the Japanese embassy in Beijing on Sept. 11. (Photo/CNS)
After the Japanese government signed a contract to nationalize disputed islands in the East China Sea also claimed by China and Taiwan, a "people's war" against Japan has been launched by the Chinese government and public simultaneously, reports the Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao.
With two Chinese maritime surveillance ships sent to the waters around the Diaoyutai islands — known as the Diaoyu islands in China and the Senkakus in Japan — the People's Liberation Army warned the Japanese government not to underestimate the determination of the Chinese military to defend their territory. Shinsuke Sugiyama, director-general of the Japanese foreign ministry's Asia and Oceania Affairs Bureau was sent to Beijing to offer reassurances that the policy of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda is to maintain regional stability in the East China Sea. Hong Lei, the spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, demanded the Japanese government call off its plan of nationalizing the disputed territory.
On Tuesday, the Japanese government signed a contract with the private owners of three of the islets in the disputed Diaoyutai group to buy them for a price of US$26 million. The move was intended to preempt plans by the governor of Tokyo to buy the islands on behalf of his metropolitan government and develop them, which would infuriate Beijing even more. The Japanese government's plan is to leave the islands in their current state, whereby they are under Japan's control but with restrictions on visits and construction.
Wang Yizhou, vice dean of Peking University's School of International Studies suggested the Chinese government should punish Japan by limiting exports of rare earth needed for the manufacture of electronics. Negotiations toward Japan gaining a permanent seat on the UN Security Council should also be suspended according to Wang.
While US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland has urged Beijing and Tokyo to settle the issue through dialogue, Shen Ssu-tsun, Taiwan's representative to Japan, has been recalled back by order of President Ma Ying-jeou.
Weather reports for the islands were broadcast by the state Chinese Central Television by order of the China Meteorological Administration to assert Chinese sovereignty, while anti-Japanese demonstrations have been held outside the Japanese embassy in Beijing. While calling the protesters to conduct themselves in a rational, Hong Lei said their patriotism is understandable. Hong said it is the responsibility of every Chinese citizen, military or civilian, to defend their homeland from foreign aggression.
