Row stiffens resolve for unity
More than one-third of those who took part in protests over the Diaoyus do not support a boycott of Japanese schools or demonstrations outside Japanese schools or department stores, according to a poll.
More than 80 per cent of the respondents said they would not be cold to Japanese people because of the dispute.
The telephone survey, conducted by the Federation of Youth Groups two weeks ago, questioned 598 people aged between 15 and 29. Almost 45 per cent (264) of respondents said the controversy had intensified feelings that Chinese people must unite.
But suggestions of controversial actions to protest against Japan's claim to the islands received mixed reactions.
Of the 241 interviewees who took part in protests, a third said they supported dismantling the Japanese-built lighthouse on the islands. Another third supported boycotting Japanese goods. Thirty-seven per cent were against such action.
Signature campaigns were the most popular form of action.
Among the respondents who did not join protests, 51.8 per cent (183) said they did not have time, while 17.1 per cent (61) said they did not know how.
Only six per cent were knowledgeable about the historical background to the dispute, while the majority knew either 'only a bit' or 'little' of it. One in 10 knew nothing.
