3,000 plus turn out for anti-China demo in Tokyo

MORE than 3,000 Japanese protesters staged an anti-China demonstration in Tokyo yesterday as tensions grew between the two Asian powers.

The protesters, led by rightwing groups, demanded China give up its claim to a group of disputed islands in the East China Sea. Police said the protest was peaceful. Waving Japanese flags, the demonstrators held banners reading "Condemn China's militaristic hegemony over Asia" and "Senkaku islands are Japanese territories."

China and Japan both claim the archipelago called Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan. Tokyo currently holds sway there, despite Beijing's claims.