Anti-China Rally in Tokyo Tomorrow
If you are planning to hang around Tokyo’s Yoyogi Park tomorrow, be prepared for a lot of noise. Right-wing groups are holding a big rally to condemn Chinese aggression in the Senkaku Islands:
The biggest anti-China action will likely take place Saturday when an alliance of activist groups led by Toshio Tamogami, former chief of staff of Japan’s Air Self Defense Force, is organizing a rally in central Tokyo. Mr. Tamogami has become an admired figure among Japan’s right-wingers after a 2008 essay—in which he denied Japanese aggression in China during World War II—caused him to lose his job.
“China is clearly aiming to annex the Senkaku islands and annex Okinawa so we need to put a stop to it at the entrance door,” Mr. Tamogami, who had reached the rank of general, said in a phone interview. “The government’s action this time was totally wrong in that respect.” He said the captain’s release only emphasized the notion that Japan is a weak nation that caves under pressure.
Mr. Tamogami expects “thousands” of participants in Saturday’s rally, planned in Tokyo’s busy Shibuya shopping and entertainment district. In June, more than 1,000 conservative politicians, academics and pundits gathered at his group’s conference. Attendants included Mr. Abe, the former prime minister, and Yuriko Koike, a former defense minister and top opposition lawmaker.
In addition to the Tokyo protest, affiliated groups will also hand out fliers in several major Japanese cities. From the advertisement video, it looks like they’ll be accusing Prime Minister Kan and the DPJ of “treason” over Japan’s recent cave-in to Chinese pressure over the detainment of a trawler captain.
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