Following the release of raw footage purportedly showing a Chinese fishing boat crashing into a Japanese Coast Guard vessel, anti-China protests have flared in Japan. From AFP:
About 4,000 anti-China protesters rallied in Tokyo on Saturday, with their anger fuelled by a video capturing a collision between Chinese and Japanese vessels which sparked a diplomatic spat.
Brandishing imperialist “Rising Sun” flags, the demonstrators gathered at an open air concert hall in the centre of the capital, a chorus of Japan’s national anthem serving as an opening ceremony.
It was the latest in a series of demonstrations against Beijing’s claim to a disputed island chain in the East China Sea, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. There have also been several anti-Japan rallies in China.
“Watching the video, I’m convinced that it was an act of terrorism,” said Masumi Yokuni, a 30-year-old housewife wearing a traditional Japanese kimono.
See also, “Japan’s Coast Guard Caught Off Guard” from the Wall Street Journal’s China Real Time blog.
And from Al Jazeera: