Anti-Japanese sentiment in China
Encyclopedia
Anti-Japanese sentiment
in China
is an issue with modern roots (post-1868). Modern anti-Japanese sentiment in China
is often rooted in nationalist or historical conflict, particularly in Japan's Japanese history textbook controversies
.
Modern Japan
seized concessions in areas of China
towards the end of the Qing Dynasty
. Dissatisfaction with the settlement and the Twenty-One Demands
by the Japanese government led to a severe boycott of Japanese products in China. Bitterness in China persists over the atrocities of the Second Sino-Japanese War
and Japan's post-war actions. This sentiment may also be at least to some extent influenced by issues related to Chinese people in Japan
.
can be directly traced to the Second Sino-Japanese War
, which was one theatre of World War II
. As a consequence of the war, China suffered 7 to 16 million civilian deaths and 3 million military casualties,. In addition, the war caused an estimated $383.3 billion USD in damage and created 95 million refugees. Manchuria
came under Japanese control in 1931 as a state named Manchukuo
. Many major cities thereafter, including Nanjing
, Shanghai
, and Beijing
were occupied in 1937 by the Japanese. Notable incidents included the Nanking Massacre
. In Manchuria, Unit 731
, a medical unit of the Japanese army, researched biological warfare
using Chinese civilians as test subjects, who were referred to as human 'logs' in the medical journals. Women from many Asian countries, including China, were made to serve as prostitutes in military brothels (and were often referred to as "comfort women
") under Japanese occupation.
) School member and a Hui wrote the: "Song of the Hui with an anti-Japanese determination".
, where a number of war criminals are enshrined, treated as kami
or important spirits, and the fact that the shrine openly states that the purpose of Japanese military involvement in Asia was to bring prosperity and liberation to Asians. This is further exacerbated by attempts to whitewash Japan's role in the war in certain school history textbooks, such as by softening some statements and removing others. That some popular media such as comics, books, movies, or documentaries depicting Japanese wartime involvement in atrocities are withdrawn due to nationalist or popular sentiment further contributes to this image. As examples, critics point to the withdrawal of Iris Chang
's The Rape of Nanking
from planned publication and the censorship of scenes of the Nanking Massacre
from the Japanese theatrical release of The Last Emperor
.
China refused war reparations from Japan in the 1972 Joint Communiqué
, Japan gave ODA (official development assistance), amounting to 3 trillion yen (30 billion USD, 90% of which are low interest loans). In Japan, this was perceived as a way of making amends to China for past military aggression. According to estimates, Japan accounts for more than 60 percent of China's ODA received. About 25 percent of the funding for all of China's infrastructure projects between 1994 and 1998 — including roads, railways, telecom systems and harbours — came from Japan.
Japanese aid to China was rarely formally publicized to the Chinese people by the Chinese government, until Japan announced that aid was to be phased out. It was finally publicly acknowledged by Chinese premier Wen Jiabao
during his April 2007 trip to Japan.
There is a perception among some Chinese that the United States
, Japan
, and Taiwan
are attempting to contain China. Japan's more recent debate to revise Article 9
, the "No War" clause, is viewed with suspicion of possible re-militarization. Anti-Japanese sentiment in China is also highlighted by the branding of several prominent Taiwanese politicians (especially those who advocate Taiwan independence
) as "Japanese running dogs" by the state-run media.
Chinese plaintiffs suing the Japanese government over accidents caused by the unearthing of poison gas have had difficulty gaining satisfaction from Japanese courts. 43 people injured in a 2003 accident and five relatives of one who died have so far been unsuccessful in their claim for 1.43 billion yen (US$11.8 million; €9.1 million) as well as medical costs and income losses due to health problems. http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2007/03/japan-court-refuses-to-award-damages-in.php, http://japanfocus.org/products/details/2369. Such issues continue to cause ill-will.
On March 13, 2007, the Tokyo High Court upheld a lower court ruling and rejected compensation claims from four Chinese people who were injured and one whose relative died from being exposed to chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China at the end of the war. Presiding Judge Hiromitsu Okita said the Japanese government was not liable for death or injury from the weapons, saying it could not have conducted a proper search for weapons in another country. The plaintiffs had sought a combined 80 million yen from the Japanese government. The court said the state was not obligated to conduct a search or to pay damages "because it cannot be said that the defendants could have prevented the outcome" of the death and injuries in the case, according to Japan Times. There were at least 700,000 pieces of chemical weapons Japan buried in China with site information destroyed by Japanese military according to Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Such lawsuits have been filed before, but Japanese courts have rejected most claims filed by individual WWII war crime victims so far.
In March 2007, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sparked a row over "comfort women." A group of about 120 lawmakers from Abe's governing party want the prime minister to revise the official apology. The lawmakers claim there is no evidence to suggest the Japanese military was directly involved in coercing the women. They said they would present the government with a petition next week demanding a rewrite of the apology, which they consider a stain on Japan's national honor. Abe told reporters in his Tokyo office that he shared the belief that there was no direct proof of the military's involvement. "The fact is, there is no evidence to prove there was coercion," he said according to LA Times. Mr Abe said the government would cooperate with a study to be conducted by a group of Liberal Democratic party MPs who are sceptical of claims that thousands of Asian women were forced to work in Japanese military brothels before and during the second world war according to Guardian. After the condemnation around the world, Abe made a qualified apology, saying "I express my sympathy for the hardships they suffered and offer my apology for the situation they found themselves in," Abe told the legislature when pressed on what he would say to the aging survivors of the "comfort women" system. "As the prime minister, I am apologizing here" according to LA Times.
Continued visits by Japanese politicians to the Yasukuni Shrine
, and the recent approval of a textbook
that downplays the Rape of Nanking and the role of sex slaves in the Imperial Japanese Army
have further aroused Chinese sentiment. Japan's campaign to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council has met with stiff opposition among Chinese people, and the Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands
, currently controlled and claimed by Japan, but claimed also by both PRC and ROC, continue to be a sticking point and a symbolic focus of anti-Japanese sentiment in China.
The buildup of anti-Japanese sentiment, aided by websites, had already been noted by Western media in early 2005. In spring 2005, anti-Japanese demonstrations were organized by anti-Japanese elements in several cities across China. The Internet, including instant messaging services, was used in organizing groups of demonstrators to take part in protests. Many were calling for a boycott of Japanese products. Outside China, these demonstrations were viewed with cynicism, partly since the Government of China does not usually permit demonstrations without government approval. The result was an apology by the Japanese PM.
Concern at anti-Japanese sentiment is believed to be behind the decision of Chinese censors to ban the film Memoirs of a Geisha
on February 1, 2006. The fact that Chinese actresses played Japanese geisha, often wrongly perceived as prostitutes in China, had caused considerable controversy among some elements of the Chinese population.
There have been several reports that stores, restaurants, public institutions and hospitals in China refuse to serve Japanese customers because Japan has not apologized for the invasion of China.
during the playing of the Japanese national anthem
at Japanese matches against several countries, including China. Except for the match against Bahrain
, Japanese supporters were instructed by the local police not to use "banners, flags, musical instruments, or wear team uniforms" and were asked to refrain from cheering. The flight to Beijing
, the venue of the final match against China, was delayed for two hours due to Chinese protesters at Beijing International Airport. After defending champion Japan defeated China
in the final by 3-1, a Chinese protest broke out, and the Japanese ambassador's car was severely damaged.
, tens of thousands of Chinese spectators in attendance cheered for the German team and booed the Japanese team vehemently. Japan was defeated by Germany and knocked out of the tournament prematurely. The Japanese players later held up a banner to thank China ("Arigato 謝謝 (Xie Xie) China") at the end of the game while the audience applauded in response. The incident caused minor controversy in China over the Chinese nationalism and anti-Japanese sentiment displayed at the game.
The game was originally planned to be held on September 18 when Mukden Incident
occurred. Because of the sensitive nature of the date in China, it was held one day earlier.
, Chinese fans booed the Japanese team during the playing of the Japanese national anthem again, at the first match for the Japanese team
with the North Korean national team
in Chongqing
on February 17. The attitude of Chinese fans had not improved despite police warnings before the game. After the match between the Japanese team and the Chinese national team
on February 20, in which the Chinese team was defeated, a small group of Chinese fans burnt the Japanese national flag
and booed the Japanese team with the derogatory term, xiǎo Rìběn (小日本, "puny Japanese").
and Taiwan
representatives.
between Okinawa and Taiwan
, thousands of Chinese citizens staged large anti-Japan protests in China in 2010; many times damaging Japanese brand cars and Japanese businesses. These increasing large demonstrations are organized on internet forums.
.
According to this view, Mao Zedong
and the Communist party claimed the victory against the Japanese invaders as part of their legacy. Initially, there was no need to resort to anti-Japanese sentiment because the principal enemies of the new country were the United States and later the Soviet Union.
After the failure of the Great Leap Forward
and the disruption of the Cultural Revolution
, Deng Xiaoping
and other leaders decided to take the country on a path of economic development based on the market economy, without relinquishing the party's grip on political power. According to this view, the government resorted to nationalism, including an appeal to the CCP's anti-Japanese credentials, in order to reassert its legitimacy to lead the country and defuse the inevitable tensions that would accompany rapid economic growth
Today, surveys have shown that anti-Japanese sentiment in China is higher among the current generation than among the Chinese who actually lived through the occupation of the Second Sino-Japanese War
.
Anti-Japanese sentiment
Anti-Japanese sentiment involves hatred, grievance, distrust, dehumanization, intimidation, fear, hostility, and/or general dislike of the Japanese people and Japanese diaspora as ethnic or national group, Japan, Japanese culture, and/or anything Japanese. Sometimes the terms Japanophobia and...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
is an issue with modern roots (post-1868). Modern anti-Japanese sentiment in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
is often rooted in nationalist or historical conflict, particularly in Japan's Japanese history textbook controversies
Japanese history textbook controversies
Japanese history textbook controversies refers to controversial content in government-approved history textbooks used in the secondary education of Japan...
.
Modern Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
seized concessions in areas of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
towards the end of the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
. Dissatisfaction with the settlement and the Twenty-One Demands
Twenty-One Demands
The ' were a set of demands made by the Empire of Japan under Prime Minister Ōkuma Shigenobu sent to the nominal government of the Republic of China on January 18, 1915, resulting in two treaties with Japan on May 25, 1915.- Background :...
by the Japanese government led to a severe boycott of Japanese products in China. Bitterness in China persists over the atrocities of the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
and Japan's post-war actions. This sentiment may also be at least to some extent influenced by issues related to Chinese people in Japan
Chinese people in Japan
Chinese people in Japan consist of migrants from China to Japan and their descendants. They have a history going back for centuries.- Population and distribution :...
.
Effects of World War II
Most reasons for anti-Japanese sentiment in ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
can be directly traced to the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, which was one theatre of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. As a consequence of the war, China suffered 7 to 16 million civilian deaths and 3 million military casualties,. In addition, the war caused an estimated $383.3 billion USD in damage and created 95 million refugees. Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
came under Japanese control in 1931 as a state named Manchukuo
Manchukuo
Manchukuo or Manshū-koku was a puppet state in Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, governed under a form of constitutional monarchy. The region was the historical homeland of the Manchus, who founded the Qing Empire in China...
. Many major cities thereafter, including Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, and Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
were occupied in 1937 by the Japanese. Notable incidents included the Nanking Massacre
Nanking Massacre
The Nanking Massacre or Nanjing Massacre, also known as the Rape of Nanking, was a mass murder, genocide and war rape that occurred during the six-week period following the Japanese capture of the city of Nanjing , the former capital of the Republic of China, on December 13, 1937 during the Second...
. In Manchuria, Unit 731
Unit 731
was a covert biological and chemical warfare research and development unit of the Imperial Japanese Army that undertook lethal human experimentation during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. It was responsible for some of the most notorious war crimes carried out by Japanese...
, a medical unit of the Japanese army, researched biological warfare
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...
using Chinese civilians as test subjects, who were referred to as human 'logs' in the medical journals. Women from many Asian countries, including China, were made to serve as prostitutes in military brothels (and were often referred to as "comfort women
Comfort women
The term "comfort women" was a euphemism used to describe women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II.Estimates vary as to how many women were involved, with numbers ranging from as low as 20,000 from some Japanese scholars to as high as 410,000 from some Chinese...
") under Japanese occupation.
Songs
Xue Wenbo, a Chengda (name of school for Hui peopleHui people
The Hui people are an ethnic group in China, defined as Chinese speaking people descended from foreign Muslims. They are typically distinguished by their practice of Islam, however some also practice other religions, and many are direct descendants of Silk Road travelers.In modern People's...
) School member and a Hui wrote the: "Song of the Hui with an anti-Japanese determination".
Post-War issues
There is deep resentment over the veneration of Japanese war veterans in the Yasukuni ShrineYasukuni Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is dedicated to the soldiers and others who died fighting on behalf of the Emperor of Japan. Currently, its Symbolic Registry of Divinities lists the names of over 2,466,000 enshrined men and women whose lives were dedicated to the service of...
, where a number of war criminals are enshrined, treated as kami
Kami
is the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
or important spirits, and the fact that the shrine openly states that the purpose of Japanese military involvement in Asia was to bring prosperity and liberation to Asians. This is further exacerbated by attempts to whitewash Japan's role in the war in certain school history textbooks, such as by softening some statements and removing others. That some popular media such as comics, books, movies, or documentaries depicting Japanese wartime involvement in atrocities are withdrawn due to nationalist or popular sentiment further contributes to this image. As examples, critics point to the withdrawal of Iris Chang
Iris Chang
Iris Shun-Ru Chang was an American historian and journalist. She is best known for her best-selling 1997 account of the Nanking Massacre, The Rape of Nanking. She committed suicide on November 9, 2004...
's The Rape of Nanking
The Rape of Nanking (book)
The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II is a bestselling 1997 non-fiction book written by Iris Chang about the 1937–1938 Nanking Massacre, the massacre and atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army after it captured Nanjing, then capital of China, during the Second...
from planned publication and the censorship of scenes of the Nanking Massacre
Nanking Massacre
The Nanking Massacre or Nanjing Massacre, also known as the Rape of Nanking, was a mass murder, genocide and war rape that occurred during the six-week period following the Japanese capture of the city of Nanjing , the former capital of the Republic of China, on December 13, 1937 during the Second...
from the Japanese theatrical release of The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor is a 1987 biopic about the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China, whose autobiography was the basis for the screenplay written by Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci. Independently produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was directed by Bertolucci and released in 1987 by Columbia Pictures...
.
China refused war reparations from Japan in the 1972 Joint Communiqué
Joint Communiqué of the Government of Japan and the Government of the People's Republic of China
The Joint Communiqué of the Government of Japan and the Government of the People's Republic of China was signed in Beijing on September 29, 1972. This established diplomatic relations between Japan and the People's Republic of China and resulted in the severing of official relations between Japan...
, Japan gave ODA (official development assistance), amounting to 3 trillion yen (30 billion USD, 90% of which are low interest loans). In Japan, this was perceived as a way of making amends to China for past military aggression. According to estimates, Japan accounts for more than 60 percent of China's ODA received. About 25 percent of the funding for all of China's infrastructure projects between 1994 and 1998 — including roads, railways, telecom systems and harbours — came from Japan.
Japanese aid to China was rarely formally publicized to the Chinese people by the Chinese government, until Japan announced that aid was to be phased out. It was finally publicly acknowledged by Chinese premier Wen Jiabao
Wen Jiabao
Wen Jiabao is the sixth and current Premier and Party secretary of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, serving as China's head of government and leading its cabinet. In his capacity as Premier, Wen is regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic policy...
during his April 2007 trip to Japan.
There is a perception among some Chinese that the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
are attempting to contain China. Japan's more recent debate to revise Article 9
Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution
Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution is a clause in the National Constitution of Japan that prohibits an act of war by the state. The Constitution came into effect on May 3, 1947, immediately following World War II. In its text, the state formally renounces war as a sovereign right and bans...
, the "No War" clause, is viewed with suspicion of possible re-militarization. Anti-Japanese sentiment in China is also highlighted by the branding of several prominent Taiwanese politicians (especially those who advocate Taiwan independence
Taiwan independence
Taiwan independence is a political movement whose goals are primarily to formally establish the Republic of Taiwan by renaming or replacing the Republic of China , form a Taiwanese national identity, reject unification and One country, two systems with the People's Republic of China and a Chinese...
) as "Japanese running dogs" by the state-run media.
Contemporary issues
Issues from the Second World War continue to generate ill-feeling in China. One issue is Japanese disposal of chemical weapons left in China by Japanese troops at the end of the war. The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which came into effect in April 1997, and the Memorandum on the Destruction of Japanese Discarded Chemical Weapons in China, signed on 30 July 1999, required Japan to dispose of an estimated 700,000 abandoned chemical weapons (Japanese estimate), but Japan was unable to complete the work on time and requested a five-year extension. See http://www.mofa.go.jp/announce/announce/1999/12/1224.html http://www.china.org.cn/english/2003/Dec/81536.htm, http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/25/asia/AS-GEN-Japan-China-Chemical-Weapons.phpChinese plaintiffs suing the Japanese government over accidents caused by the unearthing of poison gas have had difficulty gaining satisfaction from Japanese courts. 43 people injured in a 2003 accident and five relatives of one who died have so far been unsuccessful in their claim for 1.43 billion yen (US$11.8 million; €9.1 million) as well as medical costs and income losses due to health problems. http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2007/03/japan-court-refuses-to-award-damages-in.php, http://japanfocus.org/products/details/2369. Such issues continue to cause ill-will.
On March 13, 2007, the Tokyo High Court upheld a lower court ruling and rejected compensation claims from four Chinese people who were injured and one whose relative died from being exposed to chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China at the end of the war. Presiding Judge Hiromitsu Okita said the Japanese government was not liable for death or injury from the weapons, saying it could not have conducted a proper search for weapons in another country. The plaintiffs had sought a combined 80 million yen from the Japanese government. The court said the state was not obligated to conduct a search or to pay damages "because it cannot be said that the defendants could have prevented the outcome" of the death and injuries in the case, according to Japan Times. There were at least 700,000 pieces of chemical weapons Japan buried in China with site information destroyed by Japanese military according to Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Such lawsuits have been filed before, but Japanese courts have rejected most claims filed by individual WWII war crime victims so far.
In March 2007, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sparked a row over "comfort women." A group of about 120 lawmakers from Abe's governing party want the prime minister to revise the official apology. The lawmakers claim there is no evidence to suggest the Japanese military was directly involved in coercing the women. They said they would present the government with a petition next week demanding a rewrite of the apology, which they consider a stain on Japan's national honor. Abe told reporters in his Tokyo office that he shared the belief that there was no direct proof of the military's involvement. "The fact is, there is no evidence to prove there was coercion," he said according to LA Times. Mr Abe said the government would cooperate with a study to be conducted by a group of Liberal Democratic party MPs who are sceptical of claims that thousands of Asian women were forced to work in Japanese military brothels before and during the second world war according to Guardian. After the condemnation around the world, Abe made a qualified apology, saying "I express my sympathy for the hardships they suffered and offer my apology for the situation they found themselves in," Abe told the legislature when pressed on what he would say to the aging survivors of the "comfort women" system. "As the prime minister, I am apologizing here" according to LA Times.
Continued visits by Japanese politicians to the Yasukuni Shrine
Yasukuni Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is dedicated to the soldiers and others who died fighting on behalf of the Emperor of Japan. Currently, its Symbolic Registry of Divinities lists the names of over 2,466,000 enshrined men and women whose lives were dedicated to the service of...
, and the recent approval of a textbook
Japanese Society for History Textbook Reform
is a group founded in December 1996 to promote a revisionist view of Japanese history. The group was responsible for authoring a history textbook published from Fusōsha , which was heavily criticised by China, South Korea, and many Western historians for not including full accounts of or...
that downplays the Rape of Nanking and the role of sex slaves in the Imperial Japanese Army
Imperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
have further aroused Chinese sentiment. Japan's campaign to become a permanent member of the UN Security Council has met with stiff opposition among Chinese people, and the Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands
Senkaku Islands
The , also known as the Diaoyu Islands or Diaoyutai Islands or the Pinnacle Islands, are a group of disputed uninhabited islands in the East China Sea...
, currently controlled and claimed by Japan, but claimed also by both PRC and ROC, continue to be a sticking point and a symbolic focus of anti-Japanese sentiment in China.
The buildup of anti-Japanese sentiment, aided by websites, had already been noted by Western media in early 2005. In spring 2005, anti-Japanese demonstrations were organized by anti-Japanese elements in several cities across China. The Internet, including instant messaging services, was used in organizing groups of demonstrators to take part in protests. Many were calling for a boycott of Japanese products. Outside China, these demonstrations were viewed with cynicism, partly since the Government of China does not usually permit demonstrations without government approval. The result was an apology by the Japanese PM.
Concern at anti-Japanese sentiment is believed to be behind the decision of Chinese censors to ban the film Memoirs of a Geisha
Memoirs of a Geisha (film)
Memoirs of a Geisha is a 2005 film adaptation of the novel of the same name, produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment and Spyglass Entertainment and by Douglas Wick's Red Wagon Productions. It was directed by Rob Marshall. It was released in the United States on December 9, 2005 by...
on February 1, 2006. The fact that Chinese actresses played Japanese geisha, often wrongly perceived as prostitutes in China, had caused considerable controversy among some elements of the Chinese population.
There have been several reports that stores, restaurants, public institutions and hospitals in China refuse to serve Japanese customers because Japan has not apologized for the invasion of China.
Asian Cup 2004
During the Asian Cup 2004, an association football championship held in China, Chinese fans booed the Japanese teamJapan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...
during the playing of the Japanese national anthem
Kimi ga Yo
is the national anthem of post-1868 Japan. It is also one of the world's shortest national anthems in current use, with a length of 11 measures and 32 characters. Its lyrics are based on a Waka poem written in the Heian period , sung to a melody written in the imperial period...
at Japanese matches against several countries, including China. Except for the match against Bahrain
Bahrain national football team
The Bahrain national football team is the national team of the Kingdom of Bahrain and is controlled by the Bahrain Football Association; it was founded in 1951 and joined FIFA in 1966. They have never reached the finals of the World Cup, but have twice come within one match of doing so...
, Japanese supporters were instructed by the local police not to use "banners, flags, musical instruments, or wear team uniforms" and were asked to refrain from cheering. The flight to Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, the venue of the final match against China, was delayed for two hours due to Chinese protesters at Beijing International Airport. After defending champion Japan defeated China
China national football team
The China PR national football team is the national association football team of the People's Republic of China and is governed by the Chinese Football Association...
in the final by 3-1, a Chinese protest broke out, and the Japanese ambassador's car was severely damaged.
2007 FIFA Women's World Cup
At the last game of Group A of 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup held in HangzhouHangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
, tens of thousands of Chinese spectators in attendance cheered for the German team and booed the Japanese team vehemently. Japan was defeated by Germany and knocked out of the tournament prematurely. The Japanese players later held up a banner to thank China ("Arigato 謝謝 (Xie Xie) China") at the end of the game while the audience applauded in response. The incident caused minor controversy in China over the Chinese nationalism and anti-Japanese sentiment displayed at the game.
The game was originally planned to be held on September 18 when Mukden Incident
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, also known as the Manchurian Incident, was a staged event that was engineered by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for invading the northern part of China known as Manchuria in 1931....
occurred. Because of the sensitive nature of the date in China, it was held one day earlier.
East Asian Cup 2008
During the East Asian Cup 2008East Asian Cup 2008
The 2008 East Asian Football Championship was held between 17 February and 23 February in 2008. The preliminary competitions were held from 25 March to 24 June in 2007....
, Chinese fans booed the Japanese team during the playing of the Japanese national anthem again, at the first match for the Japanese team
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...
with the North Korean national team
Korea DPR national football team
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea national football team represents the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in international association football and is controlled by the DPR Korea Football Association, the governing body for football in North Korea.North Korea surprised with a...
in Chongqing
Chongqing
Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...
on February 17. The attitude of Chinese fans had not improved despite police warnings before the game. After the match between the Japanese team and the Chinese national team
China national football team
The China PR national football team is the national association football team of the People's Republic of China and is governed by the Chinese Football Association...
on February 20, in which the Chinese team was defeated, a small group of Chinese fans burnt the Japanese national flag
Flag of Japan
The national flag of Japan is a white rectangular flag with a large red disk in the center. This flag is officially called in Japanese, but is more commonly known as ....
and booed the Japanese team with the derogatory term, xiǎo Rìběn (小日本, "puny Japanese").
2008 Beijing Olympics
Compared to previous sporting events attended by Japanese teams in China, the initial reception to the Japanese Olympic representatives at the 2008 Beijing Olympics welcoming ceremony was toned down. When the Japanese representatives were announced, the crowd at the Beijing Bird's Nest Stadium became silent. Massive applause and cheering followed for the Hong KongSports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China
The Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China is the national olympic committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. As such it is a separate member of the International Olympic Committee . The current president is Timothy Fok...
and Taiwan
Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee
Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee representing the Republic of China...
representatives.
Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands dispute
In response to Japan's claims to a small group of islandsSenkaku Islands
The , also known as the Diaoyu Islands or Diaoyutai Islands or the Pinnacle Islands, are a group of disputed uninhabited islands in the East China Sea...
between Okinawa and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, thousands of Chinese citizens staged large anti-Japan protests in China in 2010; many times damaging Japanese brand cars and Japanese businesses. These increasing large demonstrations are organized on internet forums.
Politics
Some believe that anti-Japanese sentiment in China is partially the result of political manipulation by the Communist Party of ChinaCommunist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
.
According to this view, Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
and the Communist party claimed the victory against the Japanese invaders as part of their legacy. Initially, there was no need to resort to anti-Japanese sentiment because the principal enemies of the new country were the United States and later the Soviet Union.
After the failure of the Great Leap Forward
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward of the People's Republic of China was an economic and social campaign of the Communist Party of China , reflected in planning decisions from 1958 to 1961, which aimed to use China's vast population to rapidly transform the country from an agrarian economy into a modern...
and the disruption of the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
and other leaders decided to take the country on a path of economic development based on the market economy, without relinquishing the party's grip on political power. According to this view, the government resorted to nationalism, including an appeal to the CCP's anti-Japanese credentials, in order to reassert its legitimacy to lead the country and defuse the inevitable tensions that would accompany rapid economic growth
Today, surveys have shown that anti-Japanese sentiment in China is higher among the current generation than among the Chinese who actually lived through the occupation of the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
.
See also
- Racism in the People's Republic of ChinaRacism in the People's Republic of ChinaEthnic issues in the People's Republic of China are complex and arise from the influences of Chinese history, Chinese nationalism, and many other factors. Ethnic issues have driven multiple Chinese historical movements, including Red Turban Rebellion — which targeted Mongol leaderships of the Yuan...
- Anti-Japanese sentiment in KoreaAnti-Japanese sentiment in KoreaThe Anti-Japanese sentiment in Korea is complex and multi-faceted. Anti-Japanese sentiment attitudes in the Korea can be traced back to the effects of Japanese pirate raids and the Japanese invasions of Korea , such as dismembering more than 20,000 noses and ears from Koreans and bringing them back...
- Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United StatesAnti-Japanese sentiment in the United StatesAnti-Japanese sentiment in the United States has existed since the late 19th century, during the Yellow Peril. Anti-Japanese sentiment peaked during the Second World War and again in the 1980s with the rise of Japan as a major economic power.-Origins:...
- Anti-Western sentiment in ChinaAnti-Western sentiment in ChinaAnti-Western sentiment in China has been increasing since the early 1990s, particularly amongst the Chinese youth. Notable incidents which have resulted in a significant anti-Western backlash have included the 1999 NATO bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, the 2008 demonstrations during the...