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China calls for calmness as Japan ties at crossroads
(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2005-04-17 12:34
Chinese Government has called for calmness and “sober mind” among its
nationals, after a few thousand of people staged a second-wave protest against
Japan’s Koizumi government in Shanghai and several other cities on
Saturday.
Meanwhile, a senior Chinese official said that China’s
relations with Japan are now at a "crossroads".
State Councillor Tang
Jiaxuan, a former foreign minister, said Japanese leaders' visits to the
Yasukuni Shrine honoring war dead including convicted war criminals were at the
heart of the problems between the two Asian giants.
On Saturday, a few
thousand people marched along Yan’an Road in Shanghai towards the Japanese
consulate, while hundreds of others protested in the eastern Chinese city of
Hangzhou and in northern port city of Tianjin.
At the consulate in
Shanghai, riot police three-deep linked arms to prevent the crowd from entering
the compound as they pelted it with eggs, paint and water
bottle.
However, a rally scheduled for the capital city of Beijing, where
police were out in force, did not materialize following a warning Friday against
any protests by the city’s public security department.
China's leading
newspaper, People's Daily, carried a signed article on Sunday calling for the
Chinese nationals to maintain social stability for the building of a harmonious
society.
"Today's world is not placid and there exist frictions and
problems of various kinds; our endeavor to grow economy is far from being a
smooth sailing as we are faced with all sorts of difficulties," says the
article.
"These contradictions and problems can only be settled in an
orderly manner by abiding by the law and with a sober mind."
Chinese
experts say that China’s leaders do not want the protests venting Chinese anger
at rising Japanese right-wing political trends would go out of control,
jeopardizing China’s rapid economic growth.
There were allegations that
Beijing has encouraged anti-Japanese demonstrations that first erupted last week
after Japan’s Ministry of Education approved a revised version of school
textbooks whitewashing its heinous WWII crimes in China and other Asian
countries.
The People’s Daily commentary attributes the country's rapid
economic growth, progress in people's living standards and the rising prestige
of China in the international arena in the past two decades to China's stable
social order, which "should be cherished with redoubled efforts."
It
quotes late leader Deng Xiaoping as saying that stability is of "overriding
importance" in solving all of China's problems. "We should cherish and maintain
social stability the same way we protect our eyes."
The article also
underscores the importance of rule of law in dealing with various issues in the
country. "Handling of all issues in an orderly manner and in accordance with the
law is crucial for the national effort to maintain social stability and realize
social harmony."
"So long as we unite as one and make concerted efforts
to this end, there will be no difficulties that we cannot overcome," it
said.
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