Korean Activists Fly to Osaka for Dokdo Protest

Seven Koreans arrived at Osaka's Kansai International Airport on Thursday morning to protest against an event scheduled for Friday marking Japan's flimsy colonial claim to Korea's Dokdo islets.

The activists were held at the airport for eight hours as rightwing Japanese groups converged outside, but Japanese police prevented any clashes from happening.

The central government in Tokyo government is sending a vice minister to attend "Takeshima Day" in Shimane Prefecture, after the Japanese name for the Korean islets.

Nineteen Japanese lawmakers are also attending the event, which started as a small-scale regional gathering but has drawn increased interest among Japanese.