Mao portraits in anti-Japan protests a cause for concern for leaders

The unexpected brandishing of images of Mao Zedong in anti-Japan rallies is more worrying than welcome for the Chinese government, even if it has sanctioned or encouraged such protests, analysts say.

Some protesters were seen carrying portraits of Mao and making references to him in chants and on banners during the widespread rallies, which have lasted for days.

On the surface, it is easy to link Mao with the protest movement, sparked by a territorial row in the East China Sea, as he is seen as the founding father of the People's Republic of China and has long been portrayed by the party as the nation's supreme leader during the resistance against Japan in the second world war.

However, some analysts said that a crucial factor behind the recent attention on Mao was public dissatisfaction with the nation's economic reform and open-door policy, started by Deng Xiaoping after Mao's death in 1976, and which has been continued by the current leadership.

Professor Liu Kang, who teaches Chinese studies at Duke University in the United States, said: "First, [the use of Mao's image] should be seen as being nostalgic, as many Chinese believe that Mao was the heroic leader of the war with Japan [in the 1930s and 1940s].

"And second, the phenomenon suggests there is widespread discontent with the current leadership and a dissatisfaction with policies."