A Chinese lady has become a hit on social media after filming herself going on a scathing and expletive-laden rant about the misbehavior of her holidaying compatriots.
In the video she posted on Facebook, Bin Bin Ji, also called “Sister Big Bin,” rattled off a volley of harsh criticism directed at another Chinese woman who wanted to take home a large piece of wood lying on the Lovers’ Beach in Phuket, Thailand. Tour guides told the lady not to take the wood, but she didn’t listen, so Ms. Ji stepped in. In the end, the lady gave up after a long argument.
“If Thailand didn’t have laws, I can tell you, the Lovers’ Beach, within one year, we Chinese will have taken all its sand back home to put it in the fish tank to breed fish,” Ms. Ji said in the video, “You take everything. Everything. Always like this.”
“What is the system of rules? What is the system of rules? We have said it again and again. Isn’t the incident of the person being bitten to death some days ago still bloody?” she said, referring to the death of a woman mauled by a Tiger in a Beijing safari park last month. Many Chinese looked at that death as an example of what can happen when you don’t abide by the rules.
“Why are these kinds of Chinese becoming more and more? It’s f– shameful,” Ms. Ji said at the end of the video.
After Ms. Ji posted the video last Sunday on her Facebook page, the video has gained 443,000 views and 14,000 likes. Her personal page has 5,728 followers now. Facebook is blocked in China but Ms. Ji posted the video while she was still in Thailand.
The video has also been reposted on Weibo, a Chinese social media site a bit like Twitter. It received wide praise from Chinese netizens.
“Brilliantly said! I’m very happy that your behavior has effectively protected Chinese people’s image,” one named Sc、Lizhijianfeishaonian wrote.
“Overnight riches have grown, but people’s quality hasn’t caught up,” another person named Walker Min wrote.
Chinese tourists have a poor reputation abroad after making headlines with bad etiquette such as skipping lines, spitting on the floor and littering. But as China’s economy progresses and levels of education rise, people are becoming aware of this image and demanding better behavior from their fellow Chinese.
“If all people have your awareness, our people won’t need to worry about Chinese tourists wherever we go … Out of the country gate we are one family, can we do some deeds of high-quality and not let China lose face?” one named –Wazi Xiansheng said on Weibo.
The misdeeds of Chinese tourists are a headache for the government, which cares about its image abroad. The state media and authorities have used both propaganda and the law to tell Chinese people how to act when they go on vacation. In 2015, the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) started to record bad tourist behavior including disrupting public transport, ignoring local customs and damaging cultural relics.
“The misbehaviors of outbound tourists has affected Chinese people’s image to some extent,” CNTA said on its website.
In a report last year, the state media outlet Xinhua also called for people to “pack up their bag of etiquette and civilization before setting off on a trip.” Xinhua said earlier this year that the number of negative reports declined recently and that behavior had improved.
“The downside of fast economic development has surfaced slowly. The young generation is changing gradually. This is not something that can be changed overnight. Take some time. China fighting. I love China,” someone called Cookie AA commented on Ms. Ji’s video on Weibo.