The disputed Diaoyu / Senkaku islands have once again become a major topic of discussion on Chinese social media sites.
On January 21st, multiple major Chinese state media outlets such as People’s Daily, Global Times, and CCTV commemorated the Japanese occupation of the Diaoyu islands in January of 1895.
In a series of posts on Weibo, People’s Daily wrote:
“Let’s forward this together, and pass on the truth! 123 years ago today, Japan stole the Diaoyu Islands. In the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894, China was defeated. On January 14, 1895, the Meiji government in Japan secretly decided to “include the Diaoyu Islands under Japanese territory.” On January 21, the Japanese government cabinet once again discussed [the issue] and decided to forcefully occupy the Diaoyu Islands. Since ancient times, Diaoyu Island and its affiliated islands have been Chinese territory. China first discovered it and gave it the name of Diaoyu Islands. The Diaoyu Islands belong to China!”*
The post had received over 169.000 likes and 56.000 shares on Sunday afternoon, making it one of the top trending topics of the day on Weibo.
A similar post by CCTV said that “history must not be forgotten,” and that China would not yield.
The dispute over the status of the contested Senkaku/Diaoyu island group is a long-standing one in which both China and Japan use different interpretations of historical events to validate their ownership of the islands.
According to a report by the Eurasia Center, Japan took control of the Diaoyu / Senkaku islands in January 1895 when the islands were supposedly a “no man’s land.” The dispute over ownership of the area did not erupt until 1969, when a U.N.-related report revealed that the islands might hold reserves of oil and gas, after which the Chinese government claimed the islands in 1971.
Official sources on the Chinese side, however, claim that historical evidence from the Ming and Qing dynasties supports that the islands were first discovered, named and used by the Chinese, and that Chinese ownership of the islands was recognized by the Japanese government before 1895.
Tensions over the disputed islands reached a zenith with the violent anti-Japanese protests (反日游行) in China in September 2012. Across the country, people took to the streets to vent their anger; they ravaged Japanese businesses, smashed Japanese-branded cars, threw rocks at the Japanese embassy, and burned Japanese flags.
On Weibo, the online state media campaign received much support in likes, shares, and comments. “The Diaoyu islands belong to China, we must not yield,” a typical comment said.
Some netizens took a different stance: “What is the use of yelling out on Weibo like this?,” some wondered.
Strong sentiments on the dispute over the Diaoyu islands are not only visible online, but also offline; some people show their support for the Chinese ownership of the contested islands through clothing.
Photo posted on Weibo by netizen @98年老仙女.
“Look at these Diaoyu islands gloves my grandmother is wearing!,” one netizen said, posting a photo of gloves with characters saying “the Diaoyu islands belong to China!”
By Manya Koetse
Follow @whatsonweibo
*”[一起转发，传递真相！123年前的今天，日本窃取钓鱼岛】1894年中日甲午战争，中国战败。1895年1月14日，日本明治政府秘密决定将钓鱼岛“纳入日本领土”。1月21日，日本内阁再次讨论，决定强行占领钓鱼岛。钓鱼岛及其附属岛屿自古以来就是中国领土，中国最早发现、命名并利用钓鱼岛。钓鱼岛，中国的！”
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