Chinese protests...

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GoonSquad
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18 Sep 2012, 7:50 am

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BEIJING—Protesters turned out in force in Chinese cities, escalating a territorial dispute between China and Japan, while Japanese companies again shut down stores and factories as a precaution against violence.

Tuesday's demonstrations, while largely peaceful, underscore the sensitivities surrounding the fight over a clutch of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea.

Chinese officials said Tuesday they reserve the right to take further action to assert their claims, while a landing on one of the islands by two Japanese nationals drew a complaint from China's Foreign Ministry. The Japanese government, meanwhile, said 10 Chinese patrol boats were spotted near Japanese territorial waters around the disputed islands, adding that Japanese coast guard vessels were urging them not to get any closer. But Japan's top government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura, said that the large number of Chinese fishing boats reported to be heading for the area had so far failed to appear.

In Beijing, U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, meeting with senior Chinese military leaders Tuesday as part of broader Asian visit, renewed calls for peace.

"We are urging calm and restraint by all sides and we encourage them to maintain open channels of communications in order to resolve these disputes diplomatically and peacefully," he said at a news conference on Tuesday with China Defense Minister Gen. Liang Guanglie. "It is in no country's interest for this situation to escalate into conflict that would undermine peace and stability in this very important region."

Gen. Liang suggested that China is leaving military options on the table but hoped to resolve the dispute through negotiation. "We do hope the Japanese government will undo its mistakes and come back to the right track of negotiation," he said.

"We reserve right to take further actions," he added. "That being said, we still hope for a peaceful and negotiated solution for this issue and we hope to work together and work well with the Japanese government in properly handling this dispute."

This is pretty scary. The Chinese are demonstrating the sort of nationalism not seen in the west since before WWII....

They are bulling their neighbors and pressing unfounded territorial claims in all directions.

I hate to say it (no I don't), but I told you so....

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ruveyn
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18 Sep 2012, 9:42 am

GoonSquad wrote:

Mainland China is run by yet another thug regime. No surprise. Nations are generally governed by thugs. They rely on force.

ruveyn

jamieevren1210
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18 Sep 2012, 9:56 am

I'm Taiwanese.
This dispute took over the newspapers and TV reports these days. I think China's viewpoint on this is that they believe PRC has sovereignty over Taiwan, and Taiwan has control over these islands. Therefore they think that these islands belong to the PRC.
So essentially, this is a matter between Taiwan and Japan. Unfortunately Taiwan doesn't own nukes and big guns and big ships and brainwashed armforce (personal opinion, excuse me) like China. Therefore it is up to the "Big Brother" to settle this issue. Which means that, if continued, this might turn into a full-blown political debate on Taiwan's independence.
Now we've seen that happen too many times. Definitely not good, and if it does happen, the US WILL be involved. =More arguments.....

Oh, and speaking of the Chinese's attitude towards Japan, frankly, I'm not surprised with this reaction. What scares me is the force and fury of the people+the reappearance on Mao's posters/portraits/revolutionary songs and chants.
Sorta reminds me of a backwards Tiananmen.

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GoonSquad
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18 Sep 2012, 10:06 am

Interesting. I was not aware of the Taiwan angle... This could get really ugly.

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jamieevren1210
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18 Sep 2012, 10:15 am

GoonSquad wrote:

Interesting. I was not aware of the Taiwan angle... This could get really ugly.

The officials here say that the islands (Diaoyu Islands or Senkaku Islands, depending on which side you're on) belong to Ilan county, on the northeast coast of Taiwan. We fight for the islands for two simple reasons... first, there is an abundance of natural resources, and second, it expands the reach of the country even further. Here's an article on wikipedia
Link

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marshall
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18 Sep 2012, 12:54 pm

jamieevren1210 wrote:

So essentially, this is a matter between Taiwan and Japan. Unfortunately Taiwan doesn't own nukes and big guns and big ships and brainwashed armforce (personal opinion, excuse me) like China. Therefore it is up to the "Big Brother" to settle this issue. Which means that, if continued, this might turn into a full-blown political debate on Taiwan's independence.
Now we've seen that happen too many times. Definitely not good, and if it does happen, the US WILL be involved. =More arguments.....

Oh, and speaking of the Chinese's attitude towards Japan, frankly, I'm not surprised with this reaction. What scares me is the force and fury of the people+the reappearance on Mao's posters/portraits/revolutionary songs and chants.
Sorta reminds me of a backwards Tiananmen.

It's kind of a double-edge sward. As long as China is doing okay economically they are less likely to become radical. I'm really afraid a major global economic downturn could unleash something horrible. There is a strong historical correlation between economic hardship and nationalism plus other forms of political extremism.

visagrunt
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18 Sep 2012, 1:17 pm

The People's Republic has a few problems on its plate, at the moment.

It is coming into a leadership transition during a challenging economic climate. It is facing new economic challenges including contraction in some of its most productive employment sectors. It still has 70% of its population living in the countryside, entirely dependent upon the machinery of the state to provide for necessities of life, but with no effective control over mass migration to the cities, where industry can no longer absorb the influx.

Whipping the populace into some nationalistic fervour is a great way to distract them from the fact that their rice bowls are empty.

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GoonSquad
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18 Sep 2012, 1:36 pm

^^^
Yup.... and they did have a few riots over the price of cabbage months ago.

Japan makes a pretty good whipping-boy. Nanking anyone?

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Inventor
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22 Sep 2012, 5:02 am

A non event as the two parties with the best claim, are both supported by the US.

Someday the oil fields of the China Sea will have to be settled, but not soon.

China has produced uneven development. The coast looks like Japan, inland goes far back in time. They have created their own Mexico.

They have done well during the world economic boom since the world war, but now that is slowing, when they cannot stop growing. Markets for their production do not exist, they are no longer cheap, and it would take several planets for them to live a western lifestyle.

China cannot afford to be China.

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22 Sep 2012, 11:51 am

Inventor wrote:

A non event as the two parties with the best claim, are both supported by the US.

Someday the oil fields of the China Sea will have to be settled, but not soon.

Agreed...China is bluffing. Surely they know that they have far more to lose in an armed conflict with the United States/Japan, than they have to gain.

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