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There has been a spate of attacks on Japanese nationals in China, and in the end, a young life was taken. One cannot help but feel sad and outraged at these incidents. This is a serious situation that could shake Japan-China relations.
In the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, a 10-year-old boy was stabbed by a Chinese man on his way to a Japanese school. He was transferred to a hospital but died from his injuries.
The motive for the attack has not been revealed. However, since the boy was stabbed only about 200 meters from the Japanese school in a residential area where many Japanese people live, some believe the attacker was targeting Japanese people.
In June, a Japanese mother and her child were stabbed in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, while waiting for a school bus for a Japanese school. A Chinese woman lost her life trying to stop the attack. In April, a Japanese man was also slashed by a man near where the mother and child were attacked.
And now comes this heartbreaking incident, in which a child has fallen victim to a heinous crime in Shenzhen.
Sept. 18, when the Shenzhen incident occurred, marked the 93rd anniversary of the Liutiaohu Incident, which triggered the Manchurian Incident. The Japanese government asked the Chinese government in advance to take measures to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals, citing fears that anti-Japanese actions might intensify.
Why could this series of heinous acts not be prevented? The Chinese government has a responsibility to clarify the facts and take thorough measures to ensure the safety of Japanese nationals and prevent similar incidents from occurring.
However, it is inevitable that people will have doubts about China’s response. A Chinese vice foreign minister reportedly said the boy’s stabbing was an isolated incident committed by a person with a criminal record. It is regrettable that there were no detailed explanations about the spate of incidents targeting Japanese people and the Shenzhen incident itself.
In the first place, major Chinese media organizations have not reported the incident. Given this, it is impossible that the seriousness of the incident and Japan’s sense of urgency are being shared.
On Chinese social media sites, people who had learned of the incident through information disseminated by the Japanese Embassy or other means expressed their condolences, but there were also groundless posts, such as one saying, “Japanese schools are spy schools.” The fact that China has tolerated the spread of false perceptions may be behind the incident.
In other Chinese cities, there have been incidents in which non-Japanese foreigners and Chinese nationals have been attacked. There may be no doubt that these incidents are a sign of growing social discontent due to the economic slowdown and rising unemployment.
Anxiety and shock are spreading in the Japanese communities in China. Japanese companies also are increasingly hesitant to enter the Chinese market or dispatch employees to the country.
China should be aware that its government’s efforts to actively disclose information will be the only way to prevent the further deterioration of Japan-China relations and stop any negative impact on the Chinese economy.
