More than 50 people in the Chinese capital have been fined for
spitting during the week-long Labor Day holidays, according to
officials in charge of the city's image.
Beijing's management department and civilization promotion
office have jointly sent five inspection teams to patrol the
downtown Wangfujing pedestrian mall, Tian'anmen Square, commercial
centers and railway stations to stop people from spitting,
littering, posting of advertisements and writing on public
property.
As of Sunday, 56 people had been fined for spitting and refusing
to correct the bad habit, according to the teams.
The officials also handed out more than 10,000 bags to tourists,
reminding them not to litter.
Earlier reports said people spitting in the streets in Beijing
will be fined up to 50 yuan (about US$6.5).
"Fifty yuan is a fairly hefty fine for spitters," said Zhang
Huiguang, director of the Beijing Civil Affairs Bureau.
In Beijing, 50 yuan is about daily income of a Chinese college
graduate and can buy 16 subway tickets or 100 packs of paper
tissues.
The government is anxious to correct the embarrassing habits of
Chinese travelers ahead of next year's Olympics Games. The May Day
holiday week is seen as a good time to start as an estimated 150
million Chinese tourists will be on the road.
The China National Tourism Administration has issued a circular,
requiring travel agencies and tour guides to be responsible for
correcting the bad behavior of tourists during the holidays.
Jumping a queue, spitting, littering and loudly clearing one's
throat in public are some of the frequently observed bad habits
that are giving Chinese travelers a bad reputation, according to
the Spiritual Civilization Steering Committee (SCSC) of the Chinese
Communist Party, the official etiquette watchdog.
"We are supposed to remind people constantly throughout the
tour, and also lead an etiquette discussion at the end of the
tour," said Huang Xiaohui, a travel guide with a Beijing-based
travel agency.
"The Olympics are coming, and we don't want to be disgraced,"
Huang said succinctly.
Beijing expects to receive 550,000 foreign tourists during the
2008 Olympics and an estimated two million domestic tourists will
also visit the capital city.
"Promoting civilized behaviors among Chinese travelers is a
long-term task. To harvest short-term results before the games, we
need to focus our resources on the main problems," said Zhai
Weihua, SCSC deputy director.
"Tens of thousands of reporters will come to China to cover the
Games next year, which means both China's positive and negative
sides will be amplified. Once bad impressions are made, they last,
" Zhai said.
"That's why we should grab the opportunity to change uncouth
behavior," said Wu Jianmin, President of China Foreign Affairs
University, in a TV interview.
The Olympics are now only about 450 days away.
(Xinhua News Agency May 8, 2007)