KARACHI: Responding to the Japanese claim that “the Senkaku Islands are an inherent part of the territory of Japan”, published in Dawn on Sept 10, 2018, Consul General of China Wang Yu issued a statement denouncing the Japanese assertion and stated that “Diaoyu Dao, which Japan calls ‘Senkaku Islands’ and its affiliated islands are an inseparable part of the Chinese territory. Diaoyu Dao is China’s inherent territory in all historical, geographical and legal terms, and China enjoys indisputable sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao.”

He stated that Diaoyu Dao and its affiliated islands, which consist of Diaoyu Dao, Huangwei Yu, Chiwei Yu and other islands and reefs, are located to the northeast of China’s Taiwan Island and are affiliated to the Taiwan Island.

“Diaoyu Dao was first discovered, named and exploited by China. Ancient ancestors in China first discovered and named Diaoyu Dao through their production and fishery activities on the sea. The earliest historical record of the names of Diaoyu Dao, Chiwei Yu and other places can be found in the book Voyage with a Tail Wind (Shun Feng Xiang Song) published in 1403 (the first year of the reign of Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty). It shows that China had already discovered and named Diaoyu Dao by the 14th and 15th centuries. In the early years of the Ming Dynasty, China placed Diaoyu Dao under its coastal defense to guard against the invasion of Japanese pirates along its southeast coast,” said the Chinese Consul General.

He also stated that Japan grabbed Diaoyu Dao from China and it accelerated its invasion and external expansion after the Meiji Restoration. “Japan seized Ryukyu in 1879 and changed its name to Okinawa Prefecture. Soon after that, Japan began to act covertly to invade and occupy Diaoyu Dao and secretly ‘included’ Diaoyu Dao in its territory at the end of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895. Japan then forced China to sign the unequal Treaty of Shimonoseki and cede to Japan the island of Formosa (Taiwan), together with Diaoyu Dao and all other islands appertaining or belonging to the said island of Formosa.”

He reiterated that Japan’s claim of sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao is totally unfounded.

“China is the indisputable owner of Diaoyu Dao as it had exercised valid jurisdiction over the island for several hundred years long before the Japanese people ‘discovered’ it. Voluminous Japanese official documents prove that Japan was fully aware that according to international law, Diaoyu Dao has long been part of China and was not terra nullius. Japan’s act to include Diaoyu Dao as terra nullius into its territory based on the ‘occupation’ principle is in fact an illegal act of occupying Chinese territory and has no legal effect according to international law,” he stated.

The Consul General of China underscored the need for China to take resolute measures to safeguard its sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao.

“In response to Japan’s illegal violation of China’s sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao, the Chinese government has taken active and forceful measures such as issuing diplomatic statements, making serious representations with Japan and submitting notes of protest to the United Nations, solemnly stating China’s consistent proposition, principle and position, firmly upholding China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. China has enacted domestic laws, which clearly provide that Diaoyu Dao belongs to China.

China has also maintained routine presence and exercised jurisdiction in the waters of Diaoyu Dao. China’s marine surveillance vessels have been carrying out law enforcement patrol missions in the waters of Diaoyu Dao, and fishery administration law enforcement vessels have been conducting regular law enforcement patrols and fishery protection missions to uphold normal fishing order in the waters of Diaoyu Dao.”

The Consul General of China in his statement summed up that “Diaoyu Dao has been an inherent territory of China since ancient times, and China has indisputable sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao.”

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2018