EMPEROR Akihito faced a second day of emotional protests by prison camp survivors, who turned their backs and jeered him on a visit to Cardiff yesterday.
The demonstrations that have dogged the Japanese leader's state visit to Britain last night returned to London where 30 ex-servicemen protested outside a City banquet in the Emperor's honour.
About 20 former prisoners of war who suffered torture and abuse at the hands of the Japanese during the Second World War made V-signs, whistled and held up signs demanding compensation as Mr Akihito drove past on his way to welcoming ceremonies at Cardiff Castle.
The demonstration followed angry scenes in London on Tuesday when hundreds of former prisoners of war greeted the Emperor with similar insults as he began his four-day state visit. The survivors want a formal apology from the Japanese nation, and a review of the compensation set by treaty in 1951.
The visit to Wales marked 25 years of Japanese business ties with the Principality. More than #1500m has been invested in Wales since 1973, creating around 17,000 jobs.
The Emperor's aides insisted the protesters were not representative of the majority of the people in Wales, where Japanese firms have integrated successfully into the local community.
Press secretary Kazuo Chiba said one of the reasons the Japanese had invested so much in Wales was the Welsh word ''croeso'', meaning welcome. ''It is even more so today,'' he said. He insisted that the Emperor was taking the demonstrations ''in his stride''.
A crowd of around 300 people gathered at the South Gate of the city centre castle to welcome Prince Charles, who was officially receiving the Japanese royal couple.
But around 25 war veterans lined up at the castle's North Gate entrance where the Emperor was due to arrive shortly before midday.
They were ushered behind crash barriers by police officers as the Emperor's car drew up.
One angry veteran said it felt ''just like being a prisoner again'' as he was ordered to move behind the barriers.
Former Royal Warwickshire serviceman William Jones, 77, from Cardiff, said: ''This is an insult to the men who served in the war. I have been a supporter of the royal family all my life but there is no more Queen and country for me now. If the war happened again I wouldn't fight.''
Ex-gunner John Francis, 77, from Newport, Gwent, said: ''I think it is dishonourable he should be allowed in this country. It shows disrespect for people who were held prisoner by the Japanese. I am here to show support for the men who suffered at their hands.''
Former Navy serviceman Neil Paddeley, 74, from Cardiff, said he thought the Emperor's visit ''brought shame'' on the country. He said: ''It is dishonourable to the country as a whole. Why should we forget about what happened? The Emperor should apologise for what his country did.''
But many of the younger people gathered at the North Gate were keen to put the wartime bitterness in the past. Damon Lord, 18, from Newport, who has just taken a GCSE in Japanese, held up a sign with the word Welcome written in Japanese.
He said: ''I think it is a shame that some people still feel hostile. We should really look to the future. I sympathise with the people held prisoner during the war but we should put that behind us.''
Japanese teacher Sachi Ebisu, 21, who is from Osaka in Japan but works in Wales, said she was ''saddened'' by the insults to her Emperor.
She said: ''I do not think he is responsible for what happened during the war as he was only a little boy. Some of the soldiers carried things out in his name but after the war they were killed for this crime.
''I hope this hasn't damaged relations between our two countries. I feel very embarrassed about this.''
Japanese labour camp survivors plan to hand in a letter to Tony Blair today before the Emperor arrives at Downing Street for lunch.
They will ask for a meeting to urge the Prime Minister to take action to help the veterans get a full apology and compensation, to allow relations with the Japanese to be fostered without continuing protests.
The Prime Minister had made ''glaring errors'' which had made protests against the Emperor inevitable, said a protesters' group leader.
''There have never been interruptions like this to a state visit - and it is all so bloody unnecessary,'' said Arthur Titherington, chairman of the Japanese Labour Camps Survivors Association.
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