China and Japan are in a dispute over the ownership of a group of small islands in the East China Sea. It's caused anti-Japan protests, and we've been receiving interesting text messages (yes, text messages from the government - welcome to Communist China), like this one:
"Friends of the people: the people spontaneously organize protest by the Diaoyutai demonstration activities, to fully express the patriotic enthusiasm of the masses of the public. Patriotism is a wonderful sentiment, but can not be divorced from the legal system. Police advise people, according to law, and rational expression of patriotic fervor. Opportunity to incite and participation thwarted criminal behavior, the public security organs will resolutely investigate and punish. Thank you for your support and cooperation. Shenzhen Public Security Bureau"
Forgive the interesting grammar - it came to me in Chinese and I translated using Google Translate. Thankfully, until we received a message like this yesterday, we had no idea what was going on, which means that while things are happening in Shenzhen, nothing huge has happened here in our little area of Shekou. Today we did get an email from our school director about how to handle this situation, as we have Japanese and Chinese students. I know, not a terribly exciting post, but relevant as it's close to "home" for us now. Just know that we'll likely be safe, as we don't intend to participate in any anti-Japan flag stomping protests any time soon. : ) |
| Protests in Shenzhen, which is technically where we live. |
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