China protests mix colonial anger, modern dispute

Anti-Japan protesters hold portraits of the late Communist leader Mao Zedong, Chinese national flags, and a poster that reads: "Sept. 18, National Humiliation Day," while …more marching on a street outside the Japanese Embassy in Beijing Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2012. The 81st anniversary of a Japanese invasion brought a fresh wave of anti-Japan demonstrations in China on Tuesday, with thousands of protesters venting anger over the colonial past and a current dispute involving contested islands in the East China Sea. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan)

By DIDI TANG | Associated Press – 09/18/2012

BEIJING (AP) — Old wounds amplified outrage over a burning territorial dispute Tuesday as thousands of Chinese protested Tokyo's purchase of islands claimed by Beijing and marked the 81st anniversary of a Japanese invasion that China has never forgotten.

China marks every Sept. 18 by blowing sirens to remember a 1931 incident that Japan used as a pretext to invade Manchuria, setting off a brutal occupation of China that ended only at the close of World War II. Demonstrations are not routine, but this year, as Chinese fume over last week's Japanese purchase of long-contested islands in the East China Sea, they spread across the country.

Outside the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, thousands of protesters shouted patriotic slogans and demanded boycotts of Japanese goods. Some burned Japanese flags and threw apples, water bottles and eggs at the embassy, which was heavily guarded by three layers of paramilitary police and metal barricades.

Anti-Japan protests spread in China over disputed islands

September 16, 2012
Los Angeles Times (USA)

BEIJING -- Anti-Japan protests spread to dozens more Chinese cities Sunday, as thousands of demonstrators agitated by the Japanese government’s plan to buy several uninhabited islands near Taiwan marched in front of diplomatic compounds, attacked Japanese businesses and burned Japanese flags.

In the southern city of Guangzhou, demonstrators stormed into the first two floors of a complex that houses the Japanese consulate, breaking windows in a hotel and smashing a vehicle. In nearby Shenzhen, police fired tear gas and used a water cannon to disperse a large crowd of marchers. Japanese factories, grocery shops, restaurants and car dealerships were reported damaged in a number of cities, including Qingdao.

In Beijing, more than 1,000 marchers waving flags and carrying banners gathered for a second straight day in front of the Japanese Embassy, hurling water bottles at the building and chanting slogans such as “Knock down the little Japanese,” “Long live the People’s Republic of China” and “China will prevail.”

Asian territory disputes could trigger war: Panetta

2012-09-16
AFP

China and other Asian countries could end up at war over territorial disputes if governments keep up their "provocative behaviour", US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Sunday.

Speaking to reporters before arriving in Tokyo on a trip to Asia, Panetta appealed for restraint amid mounting tensions over territorial rights in the East China Sea and the South China Sea.

"I am concerned that when these countries engage in provocations of one kind or another over these various islands, that it raises the possibility that a misjudgment on one side or the other could result in violence, and could result in conflict," Panetta said, when asked about a clash between Japan and China.

"And that conflict would then have the potential of expanding."

Japan tells Hor 5 Hong to go "くそを食べる"

Discordant note: Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi (left) chats with Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong before the East Asia Summit foreign ministers' meeting in Phnom Penh on July 12. REUTERS / KYODO

Japan not happy with Cambodia minister's words

Wednesday, Sep. 5, 2012
Kyodo

Japan has told Cambodia, which holds the rotating ASEAN chairmanship this year, that it is dissatisfied with the chairman's statements after two meetings of the bloc's foreign ministers in July, according to diplomatic sources.

Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba, in a letter to his Cambodian counterpart, Hor Namhong, dated July 24, voiced regret that the issue of the abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea was not included in the statement, which was issued after the foreign ministers' meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum in Phnom Penh on July 12, the sources said.

Genba also took issue with Hor Namhong over the chairman's statement issued following the foreign ministers' meeting of East Asia Summit member countries, held in the Cambodian capital on the same day, saying that territorial disputes in the South China Sea with China and its neighbors were not properly conveyed.

Sam Rainsy and Kem Sokha to seek support in the US, Canada, the EU and Japan

លោក​កឹម​សុខា និង​លោក​សម​រង្ស៊ី ទៅ​អាមេរិក សហភាព​អឺរ៉ុប និង​ជប៉ុន ដើម្បី​ស្វែងរក​ការគាំទ្រ​

ថ្ងៃទី 30 កក្កដា 2012 | ដោយ: រតនា
Cambodia Express News

Synopsis: Sam Rainsy, SRP President, and Kem Sokha, HRP President, will depart on 31 July 2012 for North America, the EU and Japan to seek support from overseas opposition activists, as well as to meet with a number of important Superpower officials. The goal of their trip is to spread the merger of the opposition parties, to demand reform for the Cambodian National Election Committee (NEC) and to seek intervention for the return of opposition leader Sam Rainsy back to Cambodia. Both Kem Sokha and SRP MP Mu Sochua will depart from Cambodia on 31 July 2012 to head for the US where they will meet opposition leader Sam Rainsy.

ភ្នំពេញ: ប្រធាន​គណបក្ស​សម​រង្ស៊ី និង​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ដឹកនាំ​ដោយ​លោក កឹម​សុខា និង​លោក​សម ​រង្ស៊ី នឹង​ចេញ​ដំណើរនា​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៣១​កក្កដា ឆ្នាំ​២០១២ ទៅ​កាន់​សហរដ្ឋ​អាមេរិក សហភាព​អឺរ៉ុប និង​ប្រទេស​ជប៉ុន ដើម្បី​ស្វែងរក​ការគាំទ្រ​ពី​សកម្មជន​គណបក្ស​ប្រឆាំង​ទាំងពីរនៅ​ក្រៅប្រទេស ព្រមទាំង​ជួបនឹង​មន្ត្រី​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ប្រទេស​មហាអំណាច​សំខាន់ៗ​មួយចំនួន​។ គោលបំណង​នៃ​ដំណើរ​ទៅ​ក្រៅ​ប្រទេស​នោះ ដើម្បី​ផ្សព្វផ្សាយ​ពី​ការរួបរួម​របស់​គណ​បក្សប្រឆាំង ការកែទម្រង់ គ​.​ជ​.​ប​. និង​ស្វែងរក​អន្តរាគមន៍​ឲ្យ​លោក​សម​រង្ស៊ី បាន​វិលត្រឡប់មកកាន់​ប្រទេស​កម្ពុជា​ឡើងវិញ​។​

​ក្នុង​ពិធី​ជួបជុំ​រួម​គ្នា​រវាង​ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំ​គណបក្ស​សមរង្ស៊ី និង​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស នា​ព្រឹក​ថ្ងៃទី​៣០​កក្កដា ឆ្នាំ​២០១២ នៅ​ទីស្នាក់ការ​កណ្តាល​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ក្នុង​រាជធានី​ភ្នំពេញ លោក​សម ​រង្ស៊ី បាន​ប្រកាស​តាម Video Conference ពី​ក្រៅ​ប្រទេស​មក​ថា ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំ​គណបក្ស​សមរង្ស៊ី និង​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ដែល​ដឹកនាំ​ដោយ​លោក កឹម​សុខា និង​លោកស្រី មូរ សុខ​ហួរ នឹង​ធ្វើដំណើរចាក​ចេញពី​ភ្នំពេញ នា​ថ្ងៃ​ទី​៣១​កក្កដា ឆ្នាំ​២០១២ ដើម្បី​ឆ្ពោះទៅ​កាន់​សហរដ្ឋអាមេរិក​។ រូបលោក ( សមរង្ស៊ី ) ក៏​នឹង​ទៅ​កាន់​សហរដ្ឋអាមេរិក​ផងដែរ​។​

​លោក​សម​រង្ស៊ី បាន​បន្ថែមថា នៅ​អាមេរិក ក្រៅពី​ជួបនឹង​សកម្មជន អ្នកគាំទ្រ​គណបក្ស​សមរង្ស៊ី និង​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស ថ្នាក់ដឹកនាំ​ទាំង​ពីរ​គណបក្ស​ក៏​នឹង​ជួប​ជាមួយនឹង​មន្ត្រី​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​អាមេរិក មុន​នឹង​បន្តដំណើរ​ទៅកាន់​ប្រទេស​មួយចំនួននៅ​សហភាព​អឺរ៉ុប និង​ជប៉ុន​។​

EDITORIAL: China’s provocative acts unacceptable around Japanese territory

July 13, 2012
The Asahi Shimbun (Japan)

Three Chinese fishery patrol vessels intruded into Japanese territorial waters off the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture.

The intrusion took place immediately after Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda indicated plans for the government to buy three of the islands. It would be natural to assume that China's move was aimed at claiming ownership of the islands to counter the Japanese government’s decision.

The act needlessly heightens tensions between the two countries, and we strongly urge China to exercise self-control.

The event took place on the very day when the Japanese and Chinese foreign ministers were to meet on the sidelines of meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Cambodia.

ASEAN Talks Focus on S. China Sea Disputes

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, left, listens to Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, right, during their meeting at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, July 12, 2012. (Photo: AP)

Thursday, 12 July 2012
Irwin Loy, VOA | Phnom Penh

“It looks like [China] they’re becoming more aggressive every day.”

PHNOM PENH — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined senior South East Asian officials for high-level discussions in Cambodia Thursday. Ministers attending the Association of South East Asian Nations’ meetings have sought to downplay friction between member states and China all week. Yet, behind the scenes, simmering tensions from maritime disputes continue to contrast with the ministers’ public assurances of mutual cooperation.

Coming into this week’s meetings, analysts predicted tensions about the South China Sea would form a major part of discussions here. That dispute puts four ASEAN nations with competing territorial claims up against China, which claims most of the body of water.

But this week saw more controversies emerge, beyond ASEAN’s boundaries. Japan announced it had launched a formal protest with China, after Chinese vessels approached the Senkaku Islands, a set of remote islands claimed by both countries.

Clinton Warns of Sea Clashes as China Delays Talks Over Rules

Jul 11, 2012
By Daniel Ten Kate and Nicole Gaouette
Bloomberg News

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned of more confrontations in the South China Sea without a region-wide solution as China rebuffed calls to expedite talks on rules for operating in disputed waters.

“Issues such as freedom of navigation and lawful exploitation of maritime resources often involve a wide region,” Clinton said in remarks today to Asia-Pacific foreign ministers during a meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. “Approaching them strictly bilaterally could be a recipe for confusion and even confrontation.”

Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying yesterday said China would start talks on a legally binding code of conduct in the South China Sea “when conditions are ripe,” according to the official Xinhua News Agency. It warned nations this week to avoid mentioning the territorial spats with Vietnam and the Philippines at today’s regional security meeting that includes envoys from 26 Asia-Pacific nations and the European Union.

Settle China sea disputes 'without coercion': Clinton

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged countries around the South China Sea to settle their territorial disputes (AFP, Hoang Dinh Nam)

12 July 2012
By Jo Biddle (AFP)

Analysts say Clinton is likely to try to balance support for US allies Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam -- all angered by China's recent perceived aggression in contested seas -- with efforts to keep Beijing onside.

PHNOM PENH — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged countries around the South China Sea to settle their territorial disputes "without coercion" as she prepared to meet her Chinese counterpart.

Clinton is to sit down with Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi at an Asian security summit in Cambodia, with the top US diplomat keen to avoid souring ties amid a fraught background of rows between Beijing and its neighbours.

The US has made a military and economic "pivot" towards Asia in a strategic bid to counteract China's influence in the region, the main bright spot of the morose global economy and home to huge untapped resources.

Discussions between Clinton and Yang at the ASEAN Regional Forum in Phnom Penh come amid a fresh spat over a string of remote islands claimed by Japan and China.

Beijing Defends Sea Claims as Clinton Visits Region

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, center, views prosthetic limbs at a center in Vientiane, Laos, that provides them to amputees, including victims of blasts of Vietnam War era ordnance. Mrs. Clinton is attending a regional summit Thursday in Phnom Penh. (Associated Press)

The Japan coast guard handed out a photo that it said shows a Chinese patrol boat, left, cruising near its vessel on Wednesday in waters claimed by Japan near disputed East China Sea islands. (Agence France-Presse/Getty Images)

July 11, 2012
By PATRICK BARTA
The Wall Street Journal

China asserted its territorial claims in the Western Pacific on two fronts Wednesday, warning diplomats gathered in Cambodia's capital to respect its claims in the South China Sea and engaging in a standoff with Japanese vessels in the East China Sea.

Beijing sought to block efforts to resolve long-running tensions over claims in the South China Sea, warning participants in a regional summit attended by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Phnom Penh that it is "crucial" they leave the issue out of their discussions.

Mrs. Clinton arrived in the Cambodian capital late Wednesday after making a brief but historic trip to the Laotian capital of Vientiane. She is the first U.S. secretary of state to visit Laos since John Foster Dulles in 1955. She met with the communist nation's prime minister, Thongsing Thammavong, and discussed ways of unlocking more investment there as part of Washington's effort to build allies in Southeast Asia to match China's growing influence in the region.

Japan, China in fresh territorial row

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 | By Agence France-Presse

Japan protested to China on Wednesday as a new diplomatic row flared over a remote chain of islands, with Beijing asserting its "indisputable sovereignty" over the uninhabited territories.

Three Chinese patrol boats approached the islands claimed by Japan in the East China Sea on Wednesday morning, leading Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba to formally complain to his Chinese counterpart during talks in Cambodia.

Gemba "strongly lodged a protest with the Chinese government with respect to the incident which took place this morning," a foreign ministry spokeswoman told AFP in Phnom Penh.

The crews of the vessels, which have since left the islands' immediate vicinity, initially rebuffed Japanese orders to leave.

[Japanese] Crown prince honors [Japanese] policeman killed in PKO [in Cambodia]

Jun. 28, 2012

PHNOM PENH (Jiji Press)--Crown Prince Naruhito laid flowers Wednesday at a memorial in Phnom Penh to a Japanese police officer who was killed in 1993 during U.N. peacekeeping operations in the Southeast Asian country.

After putting his hands together in front of the memorial, the crown prince was briefed by Ambassador to Cambodia Masafumi Kuroki about the fallen officer, Haruyuki Takata.

Takata was transferred to the National Police Agency from the Okayama prefectural police and joined the U.N. Transitional Authority in Cambodia.

Japan's Crown Prince Starts First Official Visit to Cambodia

2012-06-27
Xinhua

Japanese Crown Prince Naruhito arrived here on Wednesday morning for a 3-day official visit to boost bilateral ties.

At the Phnom Penh International Airport, the Crown Prince was warmly greeted by Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Royal Palace Kong Sam Ol and other senior government officials.

During the stay, Naruhito will be received in royal audience by the King Norodom Sihamoni and meet with Prime Minister Hun Sen, according to a press release from Cambodia's foreign ministry.

Japanese SLAVE DRIVERS?

Cambodian migrants who were forced to work at a factory in Japan for a fraction of the pay they were promised speak to Cambodian embassy staff at their residence in Ibaraki prefecture. Photograph: supplied

Pay, hours prompt Japan exit

Monday, 25 June 2012
Sen David
The Phnom Penh Post

Eight Cambodians recruited for agricultural work in Japan have been repatriated after they were forced to work at a food factory for a fraction of the pay they were promised, the returnees said yesterday.

Five men and three women from Kandal and Pursat provinces returned home on Friday night with assistance from the Cambodian embassy in Japan.

They allege they signed up for agricultural work through the Cambodian branch of Japanese organisation Inaho Kyodoh Kumiai, but were made to work at Family Foods, in Ibaraki prefecture, when they arrived.

A thumbprinted statement by the workers obtained by the Post said the factory had forced them to work more than 13 hours a day at half the salary they had been promised, some for more than a year.

Researcher keeps watch on Angkor Wat for half a century

Everybody knows that you are not allowed to write graffiti on the wall of historical architecture. It’s a common sense. However if a graffiti has not been found for a long time, over a few hundred years, it can be a part of the architecture. This is a graffiti written by a Japanese samurai in the 17th century, over 200 years before a French naturalist Henri Mouhot discovered it in 1860. If you have a chance to visit Angkor Wat, try to find this graffiti! It’s not easy to find it. Of course, don't follow him!

Jun. 24, 2012
The Yomiuri Shimbun (Japan)

For half a century, Yoshiaki Ishizawa, a former president of Sophia University, has studied and worked to preserve the World Heritage Site of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.

Ishizawa, 74, is now preparing to guide Crown Prince Naruhito when he visits the complex on Thursday.

Many of Ishizawa's Cambodian colleagues were lost in the massacres perpetrated by the Pol Pot regime and the nation's civil war. He has also seen the temples deteriorate, but he continues to offer assistance, saying, "I want Cambodians to preserve these great ruins."

"I want to tell the crown prince about Cambodian Buddhism's worldview (sic?), which is carved in a gallery," Ishizawa said.

ANALYSIS: North Korea nuke fears spare China on U.N. resolution violations

June 13, 2012
By YOSHIHIRO MAKINO/ Staff Writer
Asahi Shimbun (Japan)

Security experts suspect that Cambodian-registered ships operated mainly by Chinese crews have been used to provide underground support to such nations as North Korea, Myanmar and Laos.

When North Korea held an elaborate parade to show off its military might, it inadvertently provided further damning evidence against its only ally.

Images of the April 15 parade in Pyongyang, held to commemorate the centennial of the birth of North Korea founder Kim Il Sung, featured large 16-wheeler transport vehicles carrying ballistic missiles.

The vehicles were believed to have come from China, the same ones mentioned in a shipping report obtained by the Japanese government.

Japan, the United States and South Korea had solid evidence to prove that China, despite its repeated denials, had violated a U.N. Security Council resolution banning weapons exports to North Korea.

But the three countries decided not to pursue the matter in the Security Council, underscoring the complexities in international horse trading.

Ship flying Cambodian flag of convenience used to transport missile vehicles from China to North Korea

In this April 15, 2012, file photo, a North Korean vehicle carrying a missile passes by during a mass military parade in Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Square. The enormous 16-wheel truck used to carry the missile was found to be exported from China. (AP photo)

Document confirms Chinese firm sold missile transport vehicles to N. Korea

June 13, 2012
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN (Japan)

Japanese government sources have confirmed that a Chinese company exported four large vehicles capable of transporting and launching ballistic missiles to North Korea last August, which would be a violation of a United Nations Security Council resolution.

While the Security Council mandate prohibits the sale of major weapons systems to Pyongyang, the official Chinese government position continues to be that it has never broken such a resolution.

Because the United States, Japan and South Korea need Chinese pressure on North Korea to prevent it testing a nuclear weapon for the third time, the three governments have not pressed Beijing on the issue, sources said.

On the urging of the United States, the three governments also decided not to publicize the shipment of the vehicles to avoid publicly embarrassing China.

The Japanese government obtained a document last October that recorded the export of the vehicles from China to North Korea.

The four vehicles believed to have been exported were likely the same ones that were prominently displayed by North Korea at a military parade in April commemorating the centennial of the birth of Kim Il Sung, North Korea's founder.

According to several Japanese government sources, the four vehicles were transported aboard the 1,999-ton Harmony Wish, a cargo ship registered with Cambodia.

Japanese crown prince to visit Cambodia

Crown prince to visit 3 S.E. Asian nations

Jun. 6, 2012
Jiji Press

Crown Prince Naruhito will leave for a weeklong tour of Thailand, Cambodia and Laos on June 25.

The schedule was reported Tuesday to a Cabinet meeting.

The crown prince last visited Thailand in 1994. He has never visited Cambodia or Laos.

His first destination is Bangkok, and he will return home after visiting five cities, including Laos' capital Vientiane.

During the tour, the crown prince is scheduled to meet leaders of the three countries. In Cambodia, he will visit Angkor Wat.

Why we must learn form history to avoid the mistakes of the past?

Evacuees from Futaba, a town near the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, arrive to an evacuation shelter near Tokyo. (Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo / March 19, 2011)

March 11, 2012
By José Holguín-Veras
Los Angeles Times

I am an engineer and a disaster researcher; I went to Japan after the March 11, 2011, magnitude 9.0 Tohoku earthquake to try to identify lessons there that could benefit future disaster-response operations.

In late May, I was following the usual research routine of interviewing individuals involved at the various stages of the disaster response, and particularly those involved in the distribution of critical supplies as part of the relief effort.

In a refugee center on the beautiful island of Miyatojima, at the entrance to Matsushima Bay, I stumbled on a story that, by its reach back in time, taught me something unexpected: Collective memory, as much as science and engineering, may save your life.

After a long day of field work, my colleagues and I were chatting with a community leader, Koutaro Ogata, from a fishing village called Murohama. We asked what had happened to him in the moments after the earthquake. He told us that he and his neighbors were well aware that a large earthquake would generate a large tsunami and they knew, particularly, what to do because "a thousand years ago" a massive earthquake and tsunami had all but wiped out Murohama.

This is the story he told. A millennium ago, the residents of Murohama, knowing they were going to be inundated, had sought safety on the village's closest hill. But they had entered into a deadly trap. A second wave, which had reached the interior of the island through an inlet, was speeding over the rice paddies from the opposite direction. The waves collided at the hill and killed those who had taken refuge there. To signify their grief and to advise future generations, the survivors erected a shrine.

Cambodia experience facilitated aid effort in the Tohoku region

Cathy Hirano, director of the Second Hand charity organization, poses with workers at a shop run by the group in Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture. COURTESY OF SECOND HAND

Veterans at Second Hand charity had the knowhow to collect funds and goods, and to get them where they were needed

Saturday, March 10, 2012

By SKYE HOHMANN

Special to The Japan Times

Cathy Hirano says it was "so painful to feel powerless in the face of such a huge disaster," recalling the day a year ago that the Pacific coast of Tohoku was hit by the huge earthquake and tsunami.

The feeling of helplessness is something that will likely linger among many others throughout the country, but Hirano, a ginger-haired long-term resident of Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, and director of the charity Second Hand, was less powerless to help than many at that moment.

"It makes a huge difference to be able to do something," Hirano says. "I think what was really moving for me were these small acts — people coming to us at Second Hand, bringing things to send to the disaster area. You could see they were just longing to do something, you could see they thought 'Thank God, there's someone giving me a chance to help,' because it was so painful."

Second Hand, at the time, was in a unique position. Long-term work in Cambodia and a charity shop-based fundraising approach had given the organization both the knowhow to collect funds and necessities for the disaster areas, and the networks needed to get supplies to people most likely to need them.