BEIJING, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- Millions of Chinese people vented their anger online Monday after Japan extended its detention of a Chinese fishing trawler captain, calling for a boycott of Japanese goods and asking the Chinese government to take stronger measures.
They entered our territorial waters, destroyed our property (the fishing boat), and seized our citizens. What do you call that? said fenghuang802 in a message posted at bbs.ifeng.com.
What the Japanese seized was not Zhan Qixiong, the trawler's captain, but the dignity of the Chinese nation, said Li Weihua at t.sina.com.cn.
We must firmly boycott Japanese goods. They are making so much money from us Chinese while hurting us so deeply. If you're a good Chinese person, you won't buy Japanese goods, said zzwghwgh at tianya.cn.
I hope the Chinese government adopts an even tougher attitude in tackling this issue. Don't let the public lose confidence, said huoxing at bbs.163.com.
On Sept. 7, two Japan Coast Guard patrol ships and a Chinese trawler collided in waters off China's Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea, over which Japan also claims sovereignty. The Japan Coast Guard illegally seized the Chinese trawler and detained the fishermen and the captain on Sept. 8.
The 14 Chinese crew were released last week, but the captain's continued detention sparked protests across the country Saturday, which also happened to mark the 79th anniversary of Japan's WWII invasion of China.
China has summoned the Japanese ambassador five times and postponed scheduled talks on joint energy exploration in the East China Sea.
A Japanese court announced Sunday the trawler captain's detention - which had been due to expire Sunday - would be extended by another 10 days, fueling the Chinese public's indignation.
China's Foreign Ministry announced late Sunday Japan's refusal to release the trawler captain had severely hurt relations between the two countries. A ministry statement said China had canceled ministerial and provincial-level contacts with Japan, suspended talks on aviation issues, and postponed a meeting on coal.
We demand the Japanese side immediately release the Chinese captain unconditionally, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement.
China will take strong counter measures if the Japanese side continues to act willfully and double its mistakes. Japan shall suffer all the consequences, Ma said.
In addition, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Guangya made solemn representations to the Japanese ambassador to China, Uichiro Niwa, Sunday evening, expressing China's strong indignation.
Chinese historians say the Diaoyu Islands have been part of Chinese territory since the early years of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). 1/2 12下一页尾页