Japan fans separated at China Asiad match

Japanese and Chinese spectators will be separated at an Asian Games football group match in Guangzhou Monday amid a simmering diplomatic row and a history of bitter rivalry between fans.

Cameras, banners and bottles containing any liquid will be also banned at the match to prevent any “untoward situation” as part of measures enforced by security authorities, the Japanese consulate-general in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou said on its website.

“Please refrain from heckling opponent players and supporters, insulting the opposite country or cheering in any other unfriendly manner as it is dangerous,” it added in a notice to Japanese visitors.

The warning comes as tensions between the Asian giants persist following Japan’s arrest of a Chinese trawler captain for allegedly ramming Japanese coastguard ships near disputed islands in the East China Sea in September.

At the Asian under-19 football championships in China last month, Japan’s squad were booed and one spectator snatched their national flag from ceremony personnel while their national anthem was played before a match.

The consulate-general said Japanese fans would be escorted by security officials into two special sections reserved for them at the 50,000-seat Tianhe Sports Centre.

About 20,000 tickets have been sold for the match but only 200 Japanese, mostly local residents, are expected to come, Kyodo news agency said, quoting the stadium’s security chief.

“We guarantee the safety of players and spectators,” he told Kyodo.

Japan and China are bunched in Group A with Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan in the Asian Games football competition in which Qatar are defending the title.

The Japanese national football team have bitter memories of facing hostile Chinese supporters at tournaments in China.

At the 2004 Asian Cup in China local spectators booed the Japanese team even when their national anthem was played, reflecting deep-rooted antipathy dating back to Japan’s World War II aggression.

The 2004 event ended with a near-riot after the final in Beijing, where Japan beat China 3-1, and a Japanese diplomat’s car was attacked.

At the 2008 East Asian championships in Chongqing, local spectators booed the Japanese national anthem, continuously jeered Japanese players and burned Japanese flags.