BEIJING, Oct 24, 2010 (AFP) - Around 200 people protested against Japan in northwest China on Sunday, witnesses said, the latest demonstration amid a simmering diplomatic row between the two nations over a disputed island chain.
The protesters rallied in a square in Lanzhou city, the capital of Gansu province, chanting patriotic and anti-Japanese slogans amid a heavy police presence, according to Internet postings and local residents.
A worker in a hotel next to the square told AFP that a large number of police had been deployed at the demonstration.
Postings and pictures of the demonstrations which appeared on the Internet were removed, apparently by China's censors, and police refused to comment on the protest when contacted by AFP.
China and Japan are trying to rebuild ties that were badly strained after Tokyo arrested a Chinese trawler captain near a disputed island chain in the East China Sea over six weeks ago, sparking a barrage of protests from Beijing.
Both sides claim the islands in the East China Sea which are known as Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan.
Tokyo subsequently released the captain, but the incident has sparked a series of sometimes violent anti-Japan protests in China.
Sunday's demonstration came after China's foreign ministry on Saturday called for more efforts to improve bilateral ties.
"China hopes to make joint efforts with the Japanese side to safeguard and advance the Sino-Japanese strategic and mutually beneficial relations," ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement.
On Saturday a similar protest occurred in southwest China's Deyang city, while last week anti-Japanese demonstrations appeared in Wuhan, Shifang, Chengdu, Xian and other cities.
Also on Saturday, about 300 anti-China protesters rallied in western Japan's Takamatsu city, the latest in a series of demonstrations against Beijing's claim to the disputed island chain.
