Chinese students in Japan gathered in Tokyo on Wednesday to expressed their condemnation of the riots that left 156 people dead and more than one thousand injured in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

"The small batch of separatists assaulted innocent civilians, violently trampling human rights, and destroyed public and private properties. Chinese people of all nationalities living all over the world would not tolerate such violence," said Li Guangzhe, a leader of Chinese Students' Association in Japan.

Li said the unity of all ethnic groups in China is in the best interest of every Chinese and it is imperative to send the message to the rest of the world that overseas Chinese are strongly against any attempt to undermine the harmony and stability of their motherland.

(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2009)