DHARAMSHALA, August 28: Tokyo’s popular four-term governor, who recently kicked up a storm between China and Japan over the Senkaku islands, has said he doesn’t want Japan to end up as a “second Tibet.”
In an interview with the Wall Streets Journal, Shintaro Ishihara hinted that Japan could suffer the fate of Tibet, which was invaded and occupied by China’s forces more than six decades ago, if it didn’t step up to China’s new found assertiveness over territorial claims in the region.
“Think of Tibet — it’s now a dependent territory of China. If Tibet wanted to be an Olympic host could it even apply? They don’t have a country,” Ishihara said.
“They don’t have a leader. They’ve even lost their culture. All they have is Dharamshala, India, which is where they have set up their government in exile. I don’t want Japan to end up as a second Tibet.”
The governor had earlier proposed and even raised around ¥1.5 billion ($19 million), to buy the islands called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese from a private Japanese owner. The islands are controlled by Japan, but claimed by China and Taiwan as well.
While Ishihara plans to build a telecommunications base, a port, and a meteorological station on the islands, he suggested “if worst comes to worst, we would probably station Japanese Self Defense Forces there.”
SDF is Japan’s version of the military, whose activities are constitutionally limited to defense.
Pro-China activists and Japanese nationalist groups have both made unauthorised landings on the islands in recent weeks, making the issue one of the most hotly debated diplomatic rows in the region.
China has said it will prevent the land from being purchased by anybody, while allowing thousands of its citizens to carry out anti-Japan protests over two consecutive weekends.
The usually intolerant Beijing government turned a blind eye to the protests even as demonstrations spread to more than 20 cities in China with protesters smashing Japan-made cars, vandalising Sushi restaurants and Japanese-owned businesses.
The protests took an ugly turn yesterday when an assailant in Beijing ripped the Japanese flag off of a car carrying the country’s ambassador to China, Uichiro Niwa.
The Japan embassy said it had “filed a strong protest with the Chinese Foreign Ministry”.
Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba said the incident was “deplorable” and called for an investigation. He said a national flag “is a symbol to the nation’s dignity that needs to respected.”
