Chinese people in several cities took to the streets on Saturday to denounce Tibetan independence and call for a boycott of French goods following anti-China protests on the Paris leg of the Olympic torch relay.
Pictures from the central city of Wuhan showed large crowds marching carrying
banners reading: “Oppose Tibet independence, support the Olympics”, and “Say no to French goods”.
There were similar protests in the southeastern city of Hefei and the southwestern city of Kunming, with groups of people gathered outside branches of the French supermarket chain Carrefour In Beijing, there was a small protest at a Carrefour supermarket, though police soon ended it.
“We are trying to wake up Chinese people’s patriotism to let them make an effort for the Olympic Games and to work together to protest against Tibetan separatist activities,” one protester, who declined to be identified, said.
A small group of people also gathered near the French embassy protesting disruptions to the Olympic torch relay in Paris, holding banners saying: “Tibet belongs to China” and “Shut up you French”.