Chinese protest pro-Tibet rallies

State media appealed for calm Sunday after Chinese in several cities rallied against pro-Tibet demonstrations along the Olympic torch’s international relay route.

Over the weekend, protesters waving Chinese flags gathered in front of the French Embassy in Beijing and at outlets of the French retailer Carrefour in nine cities across the country. They threatened to boycott the retailer and accused it of supporting the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader – a charge Carrefour has denied.

A front-page editorial Sunday in the People’s Daily newspaper, the Chinese Communist Party’s official mouthpiece, called for calm and urged people to cherish patriotism “while expressing it in a rational way.”

The report seemed to reflect concern among China’s leaders about a growing anti-Western backlash, fueled by anger over the demonstrations in Paris, London and San Francisco during the Olympic torch relay.

On Sunday, more than 1,000 demonstrators carrying banners gathered for a second day in the tourist city of Xian in front of a Carrefour, chanting slogans such as “Oppose Tibet Independence” and “Go China,” the official New China News Agency reported.

Thousands more demonstrated in other cities, including Harbin, Dalian and Jinan, state media said.

They followed similar protests Saturday.

Radio TV Hong Kong’s Radio 3 said reporters from Hong Kong had clashed with police in Hefei after the officers tried to stop them from filming protests outside a Carrefour store.

In an interview published in Journal du Dimanche, Carrefour’s chief executive, Jose Luis Duran, said the company was “taking the situation very seriously.” Its earnings had not been affected.

The New China News Agency cited Zhang Xingxing, deputy director of the Institute of Contemporary China Studies, as saying that, with China becoming increasingly connected with the rest of the world, it will inevitably face conflicts.

“Whether or not it handles them well affects the country’s future development,” Zhang said.