Demonstration in HK marks invasion anniversary

HONG KONG - Around ten Hong Kong organizations Tuesday staged peaceful demonstration to commemorate the 81st anniversary of Sept 18 Incident marking start of the Japanese invasion of northeast China, amid tension over disputed islands.

Protesters rallied outside the Japanese consulate general in central Hong Kong, holding placard that reads "The Diaoyu Islands belong to China", "The Chinese nation cannot be bullied".

Activists also chanted slogans "Don't forget the national humiliation", "The Diaoyu Islands must not be infringed," to express indignation over Japan's "purchase" of the Diaoyu Islands.

Tensions between China and Japan mounted when the Japanese Cabinet last Tuesday decided to disburse reserve funds to "purchase" part of China's Diaoyu Islands.

The Diaoyu Islands have been China's sacred territory since ancient times - a claim supported by historical facts and jurisprudential evidence.

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the biggest party in the newly-elected Legislative Council, presented a statement to the Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, saying the Diaoyu Islands are part of Chinese territory since ancient times. Therefore, Japan's "purchase" of the Islands is completely unlawful. The party and Hong Kong people condemned such provocative act.

"Within three days, we have collected more than 20,000 signatures from the Hong Kong citizens, which showed the anger over the violation of Chinese sovereignty," said the statement.

On Sept 18, 1931, Japanese troops blew up a section of the railway under its control near Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, then accused Chinese troops of sabotage as a pretext for war. They bombarded the barracks of Chinese troops near Shenyang the same evening, starting a large-scale invasion of northeast China.

The incident was also followed by Japan's full-scale invasion of China and the rest of Asia, as well as the 14-year War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.