Things are certainly escalating in regards to anti-Japanese protests due to China’s ongoing dispute with Japan over the contested Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. I’ve heard mention from a few people that more protests are likely planned for this weekend, and no doubt continuing after that. The following is a warning from the US Embassy for its citizens to avoid such events, as they can quickly turn violent.
In light of news of ongoing and likely further protests in China related to a territorial dispute in the East China Sea between China and Japan, the United States Embassy and Consulates General in China remind U.S. citizens that even gatherings intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and escalate into violence. U.S. citizens are therefore urged to avoid areas of demonstrations if possible, and to exercise caution when in the vicinity of any demonstrations. U.S. citizens should stay abreast of media coverage of local events and be aware of their surroundings at all times.
Things are certainly escalating in regards to anti-Japanese protests due to China’s ongoing dispute with Japan over the contested Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. I’ve heard mention from a few people that more protests are likely planned for this weekend, and no doubt continuing after that. The following is a warning from the US Embassy for its citizens to avoid such events, as they can quickly turn violent.
In light of news of ongoing and likely further protests in China related to a territorial dispute in the East China Sea between China and Japan, the United States Embassy and Consulates General in China remind U.S. citizens that even gatherings intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and escalate into violence. U.S. citizens are therefore urged to avoid areas of demonstrations if possible, and to exercise caution when in the vicinity of any demonstrations. U.S. citizens should stay abreast of media coverage of local events and be aware of their surroundings at all times.
While most violence seems to be directed at Japan and the Japanese, if people are prepared to light their own car on fire or throw hot noodles in someone’s face, it’s not hard to imagine the same blind anger jumping racial lines and being directed at anyone or anything deemed to be hurting the feelings of the Chinese people.
More likely than not there is nothing to worry about, but it’s worth taking an extra bit of caution. This whole Diaoyu situation is a fantastically timed distraction from other strange happenings, and so is likely to escalate more before it calms.
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To the demonstrators in major Chinese cities (including the one I live in):
Congratulations!
You really showed them this time!
Exactly what did you show and to whom? Well, I’m not sure about that.
I wonder… Do you think that your actions during the last few days did have any effect except for blocking the traffic in your hometown and helping the CCP forgetting other – really important – issues? Do you seriously believe that burning cars (belonging to Chinese people who made the mistake of buying a Toyota instead of a Santana) or ransacking Japanese businesses (who provide jobs for Chinese people) is going to change the Japanese government’s mind? Do you think that Japanese fenqing nationalists are less adamant or fervent than you are? Do you seriously think that the Japanese government – any Japanese government – will commit political suicide by giving in over this territorial issue?
I’ve studied history and while all those books that I’ve read didn’t give me a satisfactory answer as to whether those “Fisher Islands” belong to one country or the other, they did teach me a few things, one of which is: no government will easily give up sovereignty over an area it already controls. So you better learn to face the facts – the same way Tibetans, Uighurs and other people have to face the fact that their homeland is part of China now. What do you think would happen if European people started discussions about what city or region should belong to what country based on some historical argument? That would be really good, wouldn’t it? That would really help us solve all the problems that mankind is facing in the 21st century, right?
Did you manage to make yourselves believe – for one second – that the Japanese people might be impressed by your throwing stones at their embassy in Beijing? What do you think Japanese people are doing right now? Do you think they are sitting in front of their TV sets watching the news and thinking: “Gosh, they are so angry, we have to give back control over the Senkaku islands to them?” Or is it possible that they are saying to themselves: “Look at those idiots! Now they are hurting their own people because they’re angry at us!”
Yeah, I guess, you don’t care what the Japs think. What about the rest of the world? What do you think is going on in the minds of American or European people who have only recently learned about the existence of the Diaoyu islands and might have agreed with you over this territorial issue, but now they are reading about attacks on innocent Japanese residents in China? Are they going to say: “They are attacking innocent people now, so they must be right!” or will it rather be: “What degenerate and morally depraved people are these? Are there many of those in China? Is it possible that the anti-China-crowd calling them ‘goons and thugs’ is not that far off the mark, after all?”
Let’s look at what you have achieved over the last few days:
– disrupted traffic in the centres of all major Chinese cities (which is bad enough on a normal workday)
– destroyed businesses that to you look Japanese, thereby increasing the number of jobless people in your own country
– caused lots of university students to be under house arrest because their deans want to prevent them from getting into harm’s way
– destroyed other (Chinese) people’s property, because they made the big mistake of appreciating the quality of Japanese products
– endorsed the prejudices Japanese nationalists have about Chinese people (“they’re all peasants who will hurt their own people just to vent their anger”)
– endorsed the prejudices American and European China-bashers have about your country (“they’re the same bunch of goons and thugs they always were”)
– made sure that the whole world knows that you are willing to hurt innocent people just to make a point about a few little islands that most of you couldn’t even find on a map
– and last not least helping the bastards who run (and ruin) this country divert attention from the really important issues
Well done! And again: Congratulations!
Mogera Uchidai