Eleven people who had allegedly smashed a Japanese-brand car, shop
windows and billboards during anti-Japan protests in southern China's
metropolis of Guangzhou have been detained, police said Monday.
Police
in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, made the announcement
Monday on its official account of Sina Weibo, a popular Twitter-like
microblogging service, Xinhua reported.
RIA Novosti reported
that more than ten people were arrested in China Monday according to
local media reports, after police used tear gas and water cannons to
break up anti-Japanese riots which began late last week over Japan's
nationalization of the disputed Diaoyu Islands.
On the same day,
about a thousand Chinese fishing boats were dispatched to the area in
what appeared to follow up on Beijing's promise to send both fisherman
and patrol boats to the East China Sea in an attempt to refute Japan's
purchase ealier in the week of three of the five Diaoyu Islands, to
which both Beijing and Tokyo have laid claim.
On Saturday,
rioters wielding Chinese flags broke through a ring of police officers
at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, according to Chinese television,
hurling eggs, plastic bottles and other debris at the building in
protest.
Protests against Tokyo's move have continued at various
locations, including at Japanese missions, car dealerships and
restaurants.
The Diaoyu (or Senkaku, in Japanese) Islands have
long been a disputed territory between the two countries. Japan claims
it has occupied the islands since 1895, while China maintains the
islands were recognized as Chinese as early as 1783.
Taiwan and
Beijing believe Japan is occupying the islands illegally, while Tokyo
believes its rivals only became concerned over the issue in the 1970s
following discovery of valuable minerals there.
Anti-Japan protestors held in China
