By Yoko Kubota and Astrid Wendlandt
SAPPORO/PARIS (Reuters) - Thousands rallied in northernJapan calling for the G8 rich industrialised nations to bedisbanded on Saturday while in Paris, member France called forthe group to grow to include major emerging states such asChina and India.
In Sapporo, several thousand people protested against theannual Group of Eight summit due to take place at a luxuryhotel 70 km (45 miles) away.
The 90-minute march by Japanese and foreign activists tookplace under heavy security ahead of the July 7-9 meeting at thehot spring and lake resort of Toyako.
The protesters banged drums and carried colourful bannersproclaiming "Shut Down the G8" and yelled: "We are against asummit of rich nations".
In Paris, French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for themeeting to include China and India as well as representativesfrom Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, saying theworld today was "multipolar".
"I think it is not reasonable to continue to meet as eightto solve the big questions of the world, forgetting China -- 1billion, 300 million people -- and not inviting India -- 1billion people," he told a conference of the ruling UMP party.
The G8 includes the United States, Britain, Canada, France,Germany, Italy, Japan and Russia.
A SEAT FOR AFRICA
"The truth is that if we want peace and world development,everybody needs to be invited," Sarkozy said.
"I do not accept that a continent of 1 billion people likeAfrica does not have a country to represent it at the table ofworld leaders."
Sarkozy has said more than once that he thinks the groupshould be expanded. He did not detail on Saturday how thestructure should be changed, however.
This year's G8 host, Japan, argues that the current sizeworks well, with other countries brought into the group fordiscussions on specific issues. In all, 22 leaders areattending next week's meetings in Hokkaido.
"We cherish this format for G8," a senior Japanesegovernment official told reporters this week, adding that theG8 countries "share common values".
The G8 nations will meet eight other countries, includingChina, India and Brazil, in an expanded Major Economies Meeting(MEM) on July 9 to look at long-term TARGET (TGT.NY) for climatechange.
Environmentalists are urging the G8 to set bold targets forcutting C02 emissions by 2050 and interim goals for how to getthere in order to boost momentum for U.N.-led talks on a newframework for after the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012.
Those talks are set to end in Copenhagen next year.
"Countries like China and India also have to contribute toglobal efforts on cutting emissions, but ambitious mid-termtargets by industrialised nations are a crucial prerequisite,"Kathrin Guttman, WWF International Climate Policy Coordinator,said in a statement.
"Rather than passing the buck to those countries lesscapable, the world's eight wealthiest nations should do whatall real leaders do -- move first."
Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda would like to makeclimate change a centrepiece of the summit, but divisionswithin the G8 and between rich and poorer countries over how toshare the burden of reducing the greenhouse gases that causeglobal warming have cast doubt on how much the leaders canachieve.
African leaders will join the group for one day to discusspledges made in a summit in 2005 to double aid to the continentby 2010, though the issue may be pushed down the agenda by afocus on surging food and oil prices and economic worries.
MAGNET FOR PROTESTS
Summits of the G8 have become a magnet for protesters angryabout everything from climate change to the effects ofglobalisation.
In Saturday's protests, four Japanese men were arrested forviolating the public safety ordinances or interfering withpolice activities, said a police official on the island ofHokkaido, of which Sapporo is the capital. A Reuters Video Newscameraman was among those detained by police.
The protesters banged drums, carried colourful banners andyelled: "We are against a summit of rich nations".
A police source estimated the crowd at 2,000 to 3,000.
Many of the participants tried to keep it light, dressingin festival clothes, clown and animal costumes.
"Cats are against the G8 too", read one large cat-shapedplacard.
"The G8 are very lazy kings," said Eugene Benoit, who camefrom France with the group No Vox, which works with theunemployed and people without papers. "They are working for thefree market and not for the people."
The G8 was started in 1975 in the wake of the first oilcrisis as an informal gathering of senior financial officialsfrom the world's largest economies to discuss global problems.
The forum initially included the United States, Germany,France, Japan, Britain and Italy.
Canada joined a year later in 1976, making it the G7.Russia was invited to join after the collapse of the SovietUnion in 1991 and formally became a member in 1997.
(Additional reporting by Edwina Gibbs in Sapporo, Editingby Sonya Hepinstall)
