Anti-Japan Protests Turn Violent in China

Anti-Japanese protests in China turned violent Saturday in Shanghai, where angry demonstrators pelted the Japanese consulate with rocks, bottles and eggs, and there are reports of more protests in at least two other cities.

At least 5,000 people took to the streets of Shanghai, China's largest city and its commercial center, as part of a new wave of anti-Japanese protests. The demonstrators denounced Japan's bid for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council and condemned what they say are Tokyo's attempts to rewrite history by minimizing Japan's wartime atrocities.

The demonstrators also damaged several Japanese-style restaurants in Shanghai, but police appeared to be able to control the crowds.

Reports from Hangzhou, about 200 kilometers southwest from Shanghai, say a large anti-Japan protest took place in the scenic eastern city. In the north, the official Xinhua news agency said there was a similar demonstration in Tianjin, the seaport near Beijing.

Authorities are taking a harder line against demonstrations today in the capital, and a large police force is deployed around the Japanese Embassy. Japan's Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura arrives in Beijing Sunday for talks with his Chinese counterpart, Li Zhaoxing.