A Hong Kong-based map collector has offered to lend his 100 antique maps to help China prove to the international community the Diaoyu Islands have long been its territory.
Marcopolo Tam Siu-cheong, who owns more than 100,000 antique maps, has in the past week sorted out about 100 from his collection that show the islands. He bought the maps, dated from 1700 to 1930, on trips to Britain, the United States, France and Japan in the past 28 years.
'In the past, much discussion has cited Chinese maps to show the Diaoyu Islands as part of the nation,' Tam said. 'By displaying this collection I would like to point out that foreign navigation maps made during the past 300 years have also shown the sailing route by Chinese fishermen from Taiwan to the Diaoyu Islands.'
Showing the names 'Tiao Su' and 'Tiaou-su' on old maps, he argued the French and German translations of the islands' name had borrowed the pronunciation of Fujian dialects, which suggested the islands were first named by Chinese people.
'Although this is not direct evidence proving the islands are under our sovereignty, it can be one of the evidences showing Chinese people discovered, named and used the islands - three important criteria laid out in international laws to decide the sovereignty of a place,' he said.
Tam, a retired banker and a former member of the Central Policy Unit, said he would be willing to lend his maps to the central authorities if Beijing decided in future to take the territorial dispute with Japan to the International Court of Justice.