The China anti-Japanese demonstrations of 2012 or () were a series of demonstrations held across more than 100 cities
in
mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
,
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
during August and September 2012.
The main cause of the demonstrations was the escalation of the
Senkaku (Diaoyu) Islands dispute between China and
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
around the time of the anniversary of the
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, or Manchurian Incident, known in Chinese as the 9.18 Incident (九・一八), was a false flag event staged by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
On September 18, 1931, L ...
of 1931, which was the ''de facto'' catalyst to the
Japanese invasion of Manchuria
The Empire of Japan's Kwantung Army invaded Manchuria on 18 September 1931, immediately following the Mukden Incident. At the war's end in February 1932, the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo. Their occupation lasted until the ...
, culminating in a humiliating Chinese defeat and a decisive Japanese victory vis-à-vis total consolidation and annexation of
Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer Manc ...
. Protesters in several cities later became violent and local authorities began arresting demonstrators and banning the demonstrations.
Background
The
Senkaku Islands (in Japanese; Diaoyu Islands in Chinese, and Diaoyutai Islands in
Taiwan Mandarin) are offshore islands near Taiwan, and have been a subject of territorial dispute between the governments of the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
and
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Prior to the demonstrations, there were many cases of protests over the sovereignty of the islands, most notably those in China in
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
. September 18 marks the anniversary of the 1931
Japanese invasion of Manchuria
The Empire of Japan's Kwantung Army invaded Manchuria on 18 September 1931, immediately following the Mukden Incident. At the war's end in February 1932, the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo. Their occupation lasted until the ...
, the memories of which fuel anti-Japanese sentiment in China.
After the
2010 Senkaku boat collision incident, China stopped exporting
rare earths
The rare-earth elements (REE), also called the rare-earth metals or (in context) rare-earth oxides or sometimes the lanthanides (yttrium and scandium are usually included as rare earths), are a set of 17 nearly-indistinguishable lustrous silve ...
to Japan.
Incidents leading up to the protests
On 16 April 2012, Tokyo's prefectural governor
Shintaro Ishihara
was a Japanese politician and writer who was Governor of Tokyo from 1999 to 2012. Being the former leader of the radical right Japan Restoration Party, he was one of the most prominent ultranationalists in modern Japanese politics. An ultra ...
publicly announced his decision to let
Tokyo Municipality purchase the island from its private owner.
On 4 July 2012, three Japanese coast guard boats made an official inspection of one Taiwanese ship near the disputed island.
[ After the inspection, Japanese coast guard and Taiwanese coast guard stood face to face.]
On 7 July 2012, Japanese prime minister Yoshihiko Noda
is a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 2011 to 2012. He was a member of the Democratic Party, and a member of the House of Representatives (lower house) in the Diet (national legislature). He was named to succeed Naoto ...
expressed his consideration for the Japanese government to buy the disputed islands. The Chinese government angrily protested; Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin retorted "No one will ever be permitted to buy and sell China's sacred territory".
On 15 August 2012, activists from Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
sailed to, and landed on one of the disputed islands, but were stopped by the Japan Coast Guard
The is the coast guard of Japan.
The Japan Coast Guard consists of about 13,700 personnel and is responsible for the protection of the coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Th ...
. Seven activists jumped from the ships to swim ashore, five of whom reached the island; the other two turned back to the ships. The activists and their ship were detained by Japanese authorities. The detained activists were deported two days later.
First wave of protests
After the detainment of Hong Kong activists by the Japanese Coast Guard, Netizens in Mainland China called for a nationwide protest against Japan on 19 August.
In Beijing, citizens began protesting in front of the Japanese embassy on 15 August. On the morning of 19 August, a crowd gathered and held placards bearing phrases such as "Return us the Diaoyu Islands" and "Japan must confess her crimes" in protest.
In Shenzhen, protesters marched down the streets chanting slogans such as "Defend the Diaoyu Islands" and "Smash Japanese Imperialism", called for the boycott of Japanese goods and for the government to retake the islands. In the process, many protesters tore up Japanese flags and smashed Japanese-branded cars and vandalized shops selling Japanese goods; rocks were hurled at a Ramen
is a Japanese dish, Japanese noodle dish. It consists of served in a broth; common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen has its roots in Chinese ...
shop. The protests lasted until about 2pm.
According to Sing Tao Daily, the government sent in large numbers of armed police
The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...
, who called for an end to the violent protests, began driving the protesters away and detaining several over-reacting protesters. On 14 September, the Shenzhen Police detained 4 protesters for violating private property rights by deliberately smashing roadside cars.
The anti-Japanese protests were occasionally exploited by protesters who sought to criticize the Chinese government. Such demonstrations included marching with posters of the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...
—perceived to be more assertive on issues of sovereignty than current leaders, as well as signs about corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...
, food safety
Food safety (or food hygiene) is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illness resulting from t ...
, and income inequality
There are wide varieties of economic inequality, most notably income inequality measured using the distribution of income (the amount of money people are paid) and wealth inequality measured using the distribution of wealth (the amount of we ...
. Supporters of the ousted anti-capitalist leader Bo Xilai
Bo Xilai (; born 3 July 1949) is a Chinese former politician who was convicted on bribery and embezzlement charges. He came to prominence through his tenures as Mayor of Dalian and then the governor of Liaoning. From 2004 to November 2007, ...
also had a showing during the protests.
There were also protests of varied intensities in other major cities such as Jinan, Qingdao, Guangzhou, Taiyuan, Shenyang, Changchun, Harbin, Chengdu and Hangzhou. There were police officers maintaining order at the scenes to prevent incidents of violence.
Reactions
China
*On 19 August, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...
has strongly protested to the Japanese Ambassador to China. Spokesperson Qin Gang
Qin Gang (; born 19 March 1966) is a Chinese diplomat and politician who has been serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2022, making him China's second highest ranked diplomat after CCP Politburo member Wang Yi. He previously served as V ...
expressed, with regards to the landing of Japanese activists on the disputed islands, that such illegal action is a breach of Chinese territorial sovereignty and that Japan should handle current actions appropriately to avoid stirring up bilateral relations
Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...
.
*On 20 August, the Fujian provincial government decided to delay commemoration activities held with the Japanese Okinawa prefecture, citing current unsuitable atmosphere for such celebrations in the country. The activities were originally scheduled for 4 September.
Japan
*On 19 August, Vice Foreign Minister Ken'ichirō Sasae expressed that the protests made by China are "unacceptable" and voiced regret over anti-Japanese protests in China.
*On 20 August, the 10 Japanese activists who landed on the disputed islands were prosecuted for law-breaking and put under trial by the Okinawan police.
*On 20 August, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura
is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan and a former member of the House of Representatives of Japan, House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan, Diet (national legislature).
Early life and education
A native of Osaka, Os ...
told a news conference that "Both countries do not want the Senkaku issue to affect overall bilateral ties. The Sino-Japanese relationship is one of the most important bilateral ties for Japan, and it is indispensable for the stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region for China to play a constructive role".
*On 20 August, the ruling Democratic Party of Japan
The was a centristThe Democratic Party of Japan was widely described as centrist:
*
*
*
*
*
*
* to centre-left liberal or social-liberal political party in Japan from 1998 to 2016.
The party's origins lie in the previous Democratic Part ...
proposed to the government to take appropriate actions to prevent incidents of detaining activists from recurring.
Media comments
*China Youth Daily
The ''China Youth Daily'' () is the newspaper of the Communist Youth League of China since 1951 with editorial and financial independence in the People's Republic of China.
In the 1980s, it was regarded as the best newspaper in mainland China wi ...
commented that the protests occurred as a result of wrongful attitude and actions on Japan's part, which had "hurt the feelings of the Chinese people
"Hurting the feelings of the Chinese people" () is a political catchphrase used by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, in addition to Chinese state media organisations and Chinese Communist Party-affiliated newsp ...
". It claimed that the boycott of Japanese products is a sharp stand to "express the inviolable dignity of the Chinese people", and denounced instances of beating and smashing.
*BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
correspondent in Beijing Martin Patience claims that the protests were "almost certainly sanctioned by the Chinese authorities" and that the government frequently used anti-Japanese sentiment to "deflect criticism of their rule" in the past.
*
expresses that "both nations would benefit from resolving the dispute quickly, with China facing a leadership change later in the year and Japan facing separate territorial fights with Seoul and Moscow".
*
remarked that the anti-Japanese protests "reflect bitter Chinese memories of Japan's occupation of large parts of China in the 1930s and 1940s."
*On 11 September, China sent two patrol ships to the islands to demonstrate its claim of ownership. Japan formally nationalizes the three islands that were held in the ownership of Kunioki Kurihara.
*On 13 September, Chinese government submitted a
. Former
remarked "The Senkaku islands were Japanese territory in the past and are still so at present."
*On 15 September, a large number of citizens in mainland China participated in protest marches and called for a boycott of Japanese products.
But in some cities, demonstrations had become out of control, fire vandalism and other criminal acts occurred in
. Across numerous cities, Japanese made cars have been targets of vandalism. Around 10 Japanese companies in
were damaged.
.