Gary Locke's Car Attacked in Beijing

According to UK's Telegraph, around 50 Chinese mob attacked Gary Locke's car right at the entrance to the US Embassy in Beijing. The car was damaged, but Locke was able to escape after Chinese guards intervened.

The attack took place under the backdrop of China's dispute with Japan over Diaoyu Islands. A State Department spokeswoman reaffirmed US's position that the islands were covered under Article V of the security treaty between US and Japan, a stance seen by China as bias. A few days earlier, the US Defense Secretary Panetta visited Japan on an unscheduled stop on his Asia trip, and announced deployment of one more anti-missile system. Although Panetta stressed that the system was targeting North Korea, the timing clearly was very sensitive in the height of the Sino-Japanese dispute. Panetta also is extending his China stop from 2 days to 4 days.

While evidences had surfaced that violent protests against Japan and Japanese interests in dozens of cities across China were led by official securities forces disguised as mobs, rumor has it that the attack on Locke was a job done by the same group of people. It's revealing to notice that anti-Japanese protests, which had caused damages of billions of dollars in dozens of cities, 'evaporated' all in a sudden without major police crack-down. And then it came the attack to US Ambassador.

Contemporary Sino-Japanese Relations, A History of Great Endurance

The Communist government of China exhausted the last ounce of its courage after a high profile show of words over disputed Diaoyu Islands, and backed down quietly with its tail between legs. This is not the first time when a Chinese government was ashamed by Japan. History has seen the same humiliation imposed by Japan on the Qing Empirical Court, Peiyang Government, KMT Government and the Communist Government of China again and again.

• 1894, Jiawu in Chinese calendar, China lost a war over control of Korea; thus came the treaty of Shimonoseki, when China lost Taiwan and its surrounding islands, including today's disputed Diaoyu Islands.

• 1900, Japan joined seven western powers to invade China, and seized Beijing.

• 1904, Japan launch a war with Russia over interest in China. Two countries fought on Chinese land, while the Chinese government declared neutral. With a win over Russia, Japan claims exclusive rights in China's Northeast region.

• 1915, with a threat of full scale war, Japan forced China to sign a treaty known as 21 articles, in which Japan received exclusive status in China.

• 1919, Japan claimed China's Shangdong Province in the post-war Treaty of Versailles, although China was also a member of the Allies.

• 1928， trying to intervene China's civil war, Japanese army and air force attacked Jinan of Shangdong Province. Sixty-one hundred residents were killed, along hundreds of Chinese troops. Japanese army rounded up China's diplomats delegation. Chinese diplomat Cai Gongshi was tortured to death. Japanese cut his ears, and tongue and eyes. Cai and his 17 staff were then beaten and killed.

• 1931, Japanese army attacked Chinese military in Shenyang on September 18. Chinese government ordered its troops 'do not resist'. Soon the entire northeast three provinces fell to Japan.

• 1937, Japanese army attacked Chinese military in Wanping near Beijing on July 7. The incident marked the beginning of full-scale Sino-Japanese war, also known as Eight Years of Resistance'. China lost 30 million people, including 400 thousand residents of Nanjing, then capital city, slaughter by Japanese army in days following the fell of the city.

• 1972, Communist government of China and Japan established formal relationship with a joint announcement in Beijing. In a speech in Beijing, Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka expressed regret for having caused 'inconvenience' to China in previous invasions, and personally felt 'puzzled' for the history.

• 1998, then Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited Japan. While Japan had apologized to South Korea and some other southeastern Asia countries for its war crimes, Japan never apologized to China. As the first head of state from China to visit Japan, Jiang sought an official apology from Japan over its invasion and war crimes. However, Jiang was humiliated and ashamed by Japanese government and press.

Perhaps, rather than repeatedly begging Japanese government to 'reflect' on history and the suffering Japan had caused to China, Chinese government needs to reflect on what had allowed the history of China's great endurance to continue in the past 100 years.

On the eve of September 18, 1937, Chinese government learned of Japanese military's plan to attack Shenyang. At the time, Shenyang was the top city in the northeastern China, known as East-Three-Provinces. Shenyang was also the base for China's northeastern army, the best equipped military force in China. Soldiers were ordered to lock weapons and open the barrack gates. They should quote, 'lay on the bed for the country', end of quote. Thousands were killed on bed by Japanese bayonets. To show a good gesture, the city opened its gate at three o'clock in the morning before Japanese army arrived.

The height of the war resisting Japan's invasion took place in Shanghai on August 13, 1937. China mobilized 50 divisions, about 60% of its entire military power. Three months later, 187,200 soldiers were lost, sometimes at a rate of one division per hour. Still, the government directed its finance department to keep paying settlement of 1901 to Japan on time every month. As a matter of fact, Chinese government did not declare war to Japan until the break out of Pacific War when US declared war against Japan.

Chinese governments often cite inferior military power as the excuse to bowing to Japanese aggression. That's is an excuse over-abused.

Diaoyu Islands

Diaoyu Islands are a cluster of tiny islands in eastern Pacific close to Taiwan, between China and Japan. Historically, Diaoyu Islands were part of China, but taken by Japan in the late nineteen century. The island was to be returned to China per truce treaty of the WWII. However, while the then Chinese government was entangled in civil war, the US occupancy kept it as a navy target field. The island was somehow, with no specific reason, turned over to Japan in the 1960s. At the time, the mainland was in the middle of the unprecedented Great Cultural Revolution, and the Taiwan was unsettled after relocating from the mainland. Neither side paid much attention until a few years later.

Although disappointed, Taiwan did not have courage and motivation to challenge arrangement made between the US and Japan. Taiwan itself had been occupied by Japan for decades. Many Taiwan people still have complicated feeling towards that period of history, when Taiwan is ruled as part of Japan, rather than as a colony. The first elected President Li Denghui had his brother fought the WWII in Japanese Imperial Army. On the other hand, Taiwan relies on US's protection against China's military threats. Still, Taiwan made some gestures to show its claim over the island. When fishermen from mainland were harassed by Japanese Coast Guard, Taiwan vowed to face off Japan with its navy, and it did.

The Communist government on the mainland is less enthusiastic for a number of reasons. By definition, the communism movement does not recognize the boundary of countries, even boundary of families (to be elaborated at another time). Throughout the history of the Chinese Communist Party, there had been abundant cases when they 'proudly' placed the interests of the Party above the interests of the country. For example, when then Chinese government was at war with the USSR, in China, over the control of a railroad, the CCP asked its members to attack Chinese government to aide USSR. In another example, to appease leaders of North Korea, China gave a large piece of land to them, so their dear leader can claim home to a scenic mountain.

Handing of the Diaoyu Island was no exception to the CCP's tradition. Afraid the US might return the island to China (Taiwan), the CCP's official mouthpiece People's Daily issued an editorial urging the US to give the island to Japan. In the article, scholars loyal to the party made every argument to prove that the island belongs to Japan, not China.

Although Chinese governments on both sides of the Strait could care less, grassroots efforts never stopped. As a matter of fact, the current Taiwan President Mr. Ma Yingjiu was a devoted activist in Diayu Island claim when he was young. A few days ago, a group of advocates sailed from Hong Kong in a rental fishing boat. The group broke through embargoes by Japanese Coast Guards, and landed on the island before being arrested by Japanese police.

Large scale of anti-Japan protest broke in China. In some places it turned violence, while stores selling Japanese goods were vandalized, and Japanese brand cars were destroyed. A white BMW with Beijing license and an black Audi with Anhui license forced the ambassador of Japan's convey to stop in Beijing, and took away the Japanese flag on his car.

Once again, the communist government on mainland told Chinese people, it's better to leave the Diaoyu Island in Japan's hand. Official mouthpiece Global Times issued an editorial authored by Han Xiaoqing, the chief representative of People's Daily in Japan, declared the 'Protecting Diaoyu Island' movement was anti-government, thus anti-China.

The backdrop of current soften stand of the CCP was the timing. The CCP is expected to hold its 18th National Party Convention this fall, postponed from summer because of fallout of senior official Wang Lijun's defection to the US. The once-in-a-decade power transfer means everything to Party officials, and nobody wants a distraction from any direction.

Chinese Captain to Return Home

Chinese fishing boat captain Zhan Qixiong will be released to go home, announced Japanese prosecutors, citing consideration of the dispute between China and Japan on diplomatic level.

This is a rebuttal of the argument of the Japanese government that the original decision to detain the captain was based on Japan's domestic law with the decision had been made by local prosecutors. Japanese government claimed they could do nothing despite repeatedly protest from Chinese officials. It is an admission of guilt that politics does play the leading role in the ending of the incident. At the same time, it is an admission of guilt that politics could have played an equally important role in the motivation at the beginning.

There might be under the table bargaining and trading that we don't know. From the face value, it's hard to tell which side scores higher in the proactive incident which almost triggered a war which involves not only China and Japan, but also Taiwan and the US. According to the US/Japan Security Treaty, the US is obliged to step in on any land 'administered' by Japan. Putting aside all the disputes with the mainland China, Taiwan's President sent 11 armed coast guard ships to a standoff with Japanese official ships to protest the detaining of Chinese captain. The two sides, although armed with live ammo, exchanged attacks with means of flash lights and loud speakers. Taiwan claimed the Islands belong to Republic of China, the official title of Taiwan. The mainland claimed sovereign of the Islands, while placing it under the Taiwan Province according to traditional boundaries. In this sense, the two China found a common ground to fence off Japan's aggression.

Both China and Japan had hoped to let the issue settle down in time. Japan has the actual control of the island, and hope when time goes by, the rest of the world, including China and Taiwan, will get used to the reality that it is under Japan's actual control. China, on the other end, do not want to challenge Japan's superior military power in the water and air and wish the current dispute could be prolonged to the moment when its influence catch up with the economics growth.

The incident, in a way, broke the wishes from both sides. Both Japan and China will have to take a serious look at Diaoyu Islands and prepare for the next conflict which could happen at any time.

There is no doubt, though, that Japanese authorities provoked the incident. Chinese fishing boats have been fishing in the water for hundreds of years, especially in most recent years, when its near shore resources mostly exhausted by over fishing. It is believed that there was a common understanding between the two sides that China does not publicly challenge Japan's control of the Islands, but Japan allow China's fishing boats to fish in the area. At any given time, it is said around 300 Chinese fishing boats would be found in the area. Why suddenly Japanese government made a big deal of it, by chasing after a small fishing boat?

The current Japanese government started with an agenda to outgrow the US occupancy and strengthen ties with China. That plot didn't work well, and had already cost one Premier's job. The second Premier from the same Party, assumed much of the fame and debt from his predecessor, and was facing a challenge from a competitor in a primary election on September 14. By demonstrating a strong face towards China, the Premier scored a solid win, much in the similar way in the US when politicians always show strong face towards potential threats, but often adopt a more pragmatic approach after taking office. In this sense, Premier Naoto Kan won.

A New York Times article on the Islands:

Look Out for the Diaoyu Islands
By NICHOLAS KRISTOF

Tensions have erupted over some barren rocks in the Pacific that you may never have heard of, but stay tuned – this is a boundary dispute that could get ugly and some day have far-reaching consequences for China, Japan, Taiwan and the United States.

The islands in question are called the Senkaku chain by Japan, the Diaoyu islands by China, and the Diaoyutai by Taiwan. All three claim the islands, which are really just five islets and three barren rocks northeast of Taiwan, 200 miles off the Chinese coast. The latest confrontation occurred when a Chinese fishing boat collided with two Japanese naval vessels trying to intercept it near the islands. The Japanese detained the Chinese captain for questioning and the two countries have been exchanging indignant protests.

The reason to worry is that nationalists in both China and Taiwan see the islands as unquestionably theirs and think that their government has been weak in asserting this authority. So far, wiser heads have generally prevailed on each side, but at some point a weakened Chinese leader might try to gain legitimacy with the public by pushing the issue and recovering the islands. It would be a dangerous game and would have a disastrous impact on China-Japan relations, but if successful it would raise the popularity of the Chinese government and would also be a way of putting pressure on Taiwan.

The other problem is that, technically, the U.S. would be obliged to bail Japan out if there were a fight over the Senkakus. The U.S. doesn’t take a position on who owns the islands, but the Japan-U.S. security treaty specifies that the U.S. will help defend areas that Japan administers. And in 1972, when the U.S. handed Okinawa back to Japan, it agreed that Japan should administer the Senkakus. So we’re in the absurd position of being committed to help Japan fight a war over islands, even though we don’t agree that they are necessarily Japanese.

In reality, of course, there is zero chance that the U.S. will honor its treaty obligation over a few barren rocks. We’re not going to risk a nuclear confrontation with China over some islands that may well be China’s. But if we don’t help, our security relationship with Japan will be stretched to the breaking point.

So which country has a better claim to the islands? My feeling is that it’s China, although the answer isn’t clearcut. Chinese navigational records show the islands as Chinese for many centuries, and a 1783 Japanese map shows them as Chinese as well. Japan purported to “discover” the islands only in 1884 and annexed them only in 1895 when it also grabbed Taiwan. (You can also make a case that they are terra nullis, belonging to no nation.)

The best approach would be for China and Japan to agree to refer the dispute to the International Court of Justice, but realistically that won’t happen. And since some believe that the area is rich with oil and gas reserves, the claims from each side have become more insistent.

As Chinese nationalism grows, as China’s navy and ability to project power in the ocean gains, we could see some military jostling over the islands. You read it here first.