日本人民呼吁妥善处理海洋争端

Thousands of people in Japan have rallied Friday, calling on the government to end what they call the "vicious circle" of territorial disputes with neighboring countries.

Several parliamentary members, including the head of the Social Democratic Party, have attended the rally outside the Japanese parliament in Tokyo.

Parliament member Ben Hashimoto with the ruling Democratic Party of Japan says the Noda government should be more cautious over the disputes with China in the East China Sea.

"I still believe the government's nationalization move is awful. If we see this issue from China's perspective, we will feel angry too. I think the government should have behaved more cautiously."

Social Democrat Party parliament member Ryoichi Hattori says many Japanese people want good ties with China.

"It could be very difficult to mend the relations. The world may think the nationalist mindset is dominating the Japanese society. Actually there are still many Japanese who want a better relationship with China."

Nearly two thousand Japanese citizens have already signed a statement last month, calling for cooler heads and better foreign policy with neighboring countries.