senkaku islands

Why Are More Young Japanese Women Showing Nationalistic Tendencies? (It’s the internet, stupid)

Ultra-rightist movements in Japan are visible through men who cover their faces with black bandannas, sun glasses and helmets.  They drive around in what is as close to an armored van as a Japanese civilian can get and spew military music and political rhetoric from loudhailers fixed to the top of the vehicle.  You can hear them coming from miles away and are reminded that the nationalism that led Japan into World War II is still alive to some extent, albeit among a small minority of people.

It is hard to believe, quite shocking in fact, that young Japanese women who don’t appear to have a provocative thought in their head are becoming politically active on the rightist’s side. Read More

【Newsflash】 Japan Produces Documents Revealing Sizeable Holes in Chinese Senkaku Ownership Claim

Maybe Jackie Chan was wrong after all?

Amid the reports of demonstrations, mob violence and damage to property in the name of protest over the rightful ownership of the Senkaku islands, it has been difficult to focus on the facts and keep a clear head.

Yesterday, however, the Japanese government took a step towards legally resolving the dispute, producing official documentation that refutes the Chinese government’s claim over the islands, and suggesting that the Chinese side is “contradicting” itself.

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Meanwhile, in Taiwan, Pro-Japanese Sentiment Has Endured: A Japanese Businessman Experiences Unaffected Kindness

There is no doubt that tension stemming from territorial disputes between Japan and both China and Korea is making East Asia a volatile area.  Even Taiwan, which has been known as a pro-Japanese country, sent fishing boats to the Senkaku Island area in protest of Japan’s nationalization.

But while mainland China is pulsing with anti-Japanese sentiment, Taiwan’s pro-Japanese stance has yet to waver and Japanese business men could be comforted that China’s influence on Taiwan did not reach so far as to change it.  We spoke with one Japanese business man—we’ll call him Mr. T—who was in Taipei when anti-Japanese sentiments on the mainland were at their highest.  

What he found was a higher level of pro-Japanese sentiment than we could have imagined.  We’ve assembled Mr. T’s experiences for you below: Read More

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Jackie Chan Weighs in on China-Japan Island Dispute: “Definitely Belong to China!”

Who doesn’t love Jackie Chan? His movies are entertaining, he does his own stunts, he’s a great role model and he’s got a smile that could tame a lion. The 58-year-old entertainer is one of the most well-known and well-loved stars in the world, and Japan is no exception.

Which is why it must have felt like a roundhouse kick to the face when he officially threw his weight behind the home team regarding the Senkaku Island dispute on Monday.

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World Famous Author Haruki Murakami’s Passionate Essay on the Dispute Over the Senkaku Islands

Haruki Murakami, the award-winning essayist and critically-acclaimed author of Norwegian Wood, Kafka on the Shore and many others, has spoken out about the recent troubles between Japan, China and Taiwan in a startlingly down-to-earth essay over on the Asahi Shinbun Digital’s culture section.

Motivated in particular by the recent news of China’s bookshops removing titles by Japanese authors, the essay focuses on the importance of cultural exchange in our societies and how, through all forms of media, we are able to communicate our very souls over seas and across borders. Read More

Chinese Media in Japan Sends Message Home: “Nothing Much to Report Here!”

With the debate over the ownership of the Senkaku islands remaining heated, tensions continue to run high across mainland China. There have been numerous instances of attacks on those being seen to support Japan, and Japanese-owned businesses have been hit hard, with many, including world-famous fashion store Uniqlo, ordering their Japanese staff to remain at home for the time being.

On this side of the water, however, both Japanese and Chinese alike are going about their daily lives with relatively little conflict or stress… Read More

Chinese Trio Dress Up Like Japanese People and “Apologize” to Buddha Over Senkaku Islands

In a refreshingly mellow demonstration held on 23 September in Lushan County, Henan 3 people donned Japanese style costumes and silently knelt in front of the Spring Temple Buddha.

Kneeling side by side the two men and one woman held up a banner reading “Daiyou Islands [Chinese name for Senkaku Islands] belong to China.” with a picture of one of the disputed islands and a ridiculously enormous Chinese flag flying above it.

And you know, in spite of all this I’m not entirely sure they are supporting China.

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Anti-Japan Demos in China: Some People Were Mobilized by Chinese Authorities’ Offer of 100 Yuan

In the past few months, several of the anti-Japan demonstrations in China have turned into riots, many of which resulted in extensive damage to Japanese companies all over China.

But what is it that got the Chinese people so worked up? Surely not everyone is that passionate about the Japanese nationalization of the disputed Senkaku Islands. Perhaps people just got carried away in the mob mentality?

According to one Chinese demonstrator, the Chinese government may have something to do with it, claiming that Chinese officials mobilized people to join the Anti-Japan demos by offering them payments of 100 yuan, or about $15 US.

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Japan Starts High Seas Squirt-Gun Fight With Taiwan, Pushes Fishing Boat Flotilla Out of Contested Waters

Alright, let’s recap.

Last Tuesday, a flotilla of Taiwanese fishing boats was rumored to have set off for the disputed Senkaku islands, located near the Japanese islands of Okinawa, seeking to assert their ownership among China and Japan.

At around 6 a.m. on Sept. 25, the 50-strong Taiwanese flotilla arrived in the disputed waters. At least eight patrol ships were sailing alongside the fishing vessels and many of the boats were displaying banners reading “We swear to defend the Senkaku islands!”

Japanese coastguard patrol boats moved in to intercept the tiny fleet and warned them to vacate the area. However, the Taiwanese boats maintained their position, asserting that they were in Taiwanese waters and their presence perfectly legitimate. Tensions were running high and it seemed only a matter of time before the conflict turned hostile.

And that’s when Japan decided to bring out the big guns.

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【TGS 2012】 Where Have All the Chinese Gone?

Over 200 companies from 19 countries are said to be operating booths at this year’s Tokyo Game Show, but visitors to the four-day long event may notice that one major world power turned out to be a no-show.

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China Reportedly Sends Fishing Boat Armada to Senkaku Islands, Fails to Show Up but a New Challenger Approaches

Chinese state-run media reported on Monday, September 17 that 1,000 Chinese boats were heading toward the Senkaku Islands, the group of islands at the center of a territorial dispute that has triggered numerous anti-Japanese protests across China since last month.

The “armada” was said to be made up of fishing boats from coastal provinces such as Zhejiang and Fujian, and while Chinese media made it sound like the fleet was getting ready to play a game of naval chicken, a Chinese fishing industry representative followed up by saying that the mass departure of boats from port was merely because waters in the East China sea had become open to fishing.

Still, when pictures like the ones above and below surface on the internet along with the headline “1000 Fishing Chinese Ships Heading to Waters Around Senkaku”, you can’t blame the Japanese for catching the jitters.

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High Ranking Chinese Officer Demands “Japan Should Leave Okinawa”

According to South Korea’s Far East Daily newspaper, China’s public radio broadcast an interview with a currently active Major General who spoke like many Generals do, with much aplomb and sabre rattling to be heard. Let’s see what he has to say.

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