Tokyo, Dec. 21.
Charging America and Britain with purposely ignoring their own discriminatory, measures against Japan, the "Tokyo Asahi," leading vernal cular daily, today editorially declared that the outcry among Western Powers against Japanese plans for a new order in East Asia was "unwarrantyhen Britain is consolidating her Empire into a bloc, and when America is attempting to carry out'a similar policy in the Western hemisphere, is it not inevitable that East Asia should, as the Foreign Minister, Mr. Arita, justly remarked, seek to create a bloc that will not only be strong but self-sufficient the "Asahi" declared recalling the statement made on Monday by Mr. Hachiro Arita.
"Of the Powers that try to avail themselves of every opportunity at their disposal to protest and complain against the establishment of a new order in East Asia, not a few close their eyes to the true conditions in Japan, whose natural resources are meager in relation to her population, while her home market cannot consume all her manufactured goods.
Reality Not Faced "By thus, conveniently to themselves, pretending not to face reality, they close the door to Japanese immigration and set-up discriminatory trade barriers against Japanese goods, which are not only cheap, but good. Moreover, those Powers are seeking io keep China in a semi-colonial status so that she may remain the eternal objective of their exploitation," the journal declared.
A new economic system in East Asia, the "Asahi" said, would result not in a reduction of the economic activities of the Powers, but will bear the opposite result, Manchoukuo, it pointed out, has bought more British goods than when it was governed by Marshal Chang Hsueh-liang.
The complaints of the Powers, freely and frequently made during the present campaign in China, the "Asahi" warned, would not serve the cause of peace-either in Asia or in the world.—Domei.
The Pearl River cannot be reopened to general navigation until the mines indiscriminately laid in the estuary by the Chinese forces have been swept away and both banks of the river have been cleared of guerillas, Vice-Admiral Koichi Shiozawa, former Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese naval forces in South China, told newspaper men here today.
Vice-Admiral Shiozawa returned to Tokyo this morning. He commanded the naval forces which escorted the expeditionary force to Pias Bay for the landing which led to the capture of Canton. He was received in audience by Emperor Hirohito today and submitted a report on the activities of the South China forces.
Vice-Admiral Shiozawa told newsren that about half a million Chi-rose, or half of the normal population of Canton, already had returned to the city.
He dismissed the report of a Chi nese plan to recapture Canton as a "typical case of Chinese propaganda. It would be "strategically impossi-He" for the Chinese to recapture the city, he declared.—Domei.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.