Chinese anger towards pro-Tibetan sympathisers escalated yesterday into street protests around the country against branches of Carrefour, the French hypermarket chain.

The first wave of anti-French demonstrations in China since Paris opened ties with Beijing in 1964 was seen by President Sarkozy’s Government as evidence that Paris had been singled out as the main culprit in the international fiasco of the Olympic torch relay.

Carrefour, the most visible sign of France in China, was attacked on the internet for alleged support of the Dalai Lama. In Xian, the ancient capital, more than 1,000 demonstrators gathered outside branches of the chain, chanting and waving banners that read “Oppose Tibet independence” and “Boycott Carrefour”.

Similar rallies took place in the northeastern city of Harbin, the eastern city of Jinan and in several other provinces across China, where the French company has 122 outlets.

Some Chinese protesters also called for Corsican independence – to match French support for Tibetan nationalists. In Beijing, small protests erupted at one Carrefour and outside the French Embassy as well as the Beijing French School. Dozens of police, some in riot gear, quickly dispersed the crowd at the Embassy.

In internet chatrooms, online activists furious at disruptions of the Olympic torch relay in cities from Paris to London and San Francisco have accused Carrefour of supporting the exiled government of the Dalai Lama.

In Paris, José Luis Durán, the executive chairman of Carrefour, denied that the company supported the Dalai Lama or Tibetan nationalists. “We are taking the situation very seriously,” he said. “We cannot take the reaction of our two million daily Chinese clients lightly. A large part of the Chinese people was very shocked by the incidents that marred the passage of the Olympic torch through Paris.”

Mr Sarkozy, supported by French public opinion, has gone further than other Western leaders in raising concerns over China’s human rights record. He has threatened to cancel his planned trip to the opening ceremony if Beijing does not hold talks with the Dalai Lama.

Wang Zheng, a protester at Carrefour in Xian, said: “This was a patriotic movement. We oppose Tibetan and Taiwan independence and we also oppose the politicisation of the Olympic Games.”

China has been enraged by signs of Western sympathy for the Tibetans who rioted in the streets of Lhasa, the regional capital, on March 14.The People’s Daily newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, ran a front-page editorial yesterday calling on people to cherish patriotism but express their feelings in a rational way. State media also appeared to oppose calls for a boycott of French goods.

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