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Anti-graft battle should return parks to people by eradicating illegal, exlusive, high-end clubs
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Anti-graft battle should return parks to people by eradicating illegal, exlusive, high-end clubs
WITH the central and local governments pledging to keep up the fight against waste and corruption, its effects continue to be felt.
Some high-end Moutai prices have fallen to a recent low of less than 1,000 yuan (US$164) a bottle. Wuliangye, another branded liquor, recently announced it would auction 340 of its cars as part of the state-owned enterpriseÕ official car reform initiative.
The explosive growth in sales of luxury items stagnated at 2 percent last year in China, against 7 in 2012 and 30 percent in 2011. For the first time in recent memory, many employees are galloping into the Year of the Horse without the time-honored annual year-end company feast.
During my family escape to Hangzhou over the weekend, we made a customary stop at the famous Louwailou Restaurant within the West Lake. The waitress was so eager to recommend some overpriced Òmust-eats,Ó that we suspected the era of easy money is gone, even for that famous eatery.
When we left by taking a taxi, the driver remarked that business was way down compared with previous levels.
The last time we were there, we had to get a numbered card first for the restaurant, and we waited at the entrance for a suitable table to be vacated.
Inconvenient truths
We stayed at a hotel in a secluded PLA health resort right next to the West Lake, and during the morning buffet we sometimes found ourselves the only patrons in its spacious restaurant. We heard one waitress whispering to another, ÒI do not know how things will turn out if it continues like this ...Ó ÒItÓ means, I guessed, the business.
Given these widespread anxieties, it will be interesting to see how long the Party clean-up efforts will last.
As one of the two earthly paradises (the other being Suzhou), Hangzhou is also feeling the brunt of a rectification campaign aimed at cracking down on private clubs that exclude the public in public parks and scenic areas.
Hangzhou-based Qianjiang Evening News reported on January 22 that more than 30 such clubs have already been closed in an effort called the Òthree returns,Ó meaning returning the lakes, the gardens, and the scenery, to the people.
Prior to this Hangzhou had been much extolled for generously allowing free admission to the West Lake.
As a matter of fact, in recent years some newly rich tycoons have been setting up clubs in these areas in their eagerness to provide exclusive and secure fraternizing venues for successful business people and powerful officials.
For instance, an exclusive club founded by Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, occupies around three-quarters of a hectare on the coveted lakeside. The membership fee is 200,000 yuan (US$33,000).
High risk of comeback
In the latest campaign, the club has suspended business, and is renovating itself into a venue that does not explicitly discriminate against ordinary people. Technically, many clubs have claimed they do not exclude the public from the scenic lakeside, but the reality is that most people are intimidated by the high-end clubs with their exclusive atmosphere and staff.
I am less optimistic about the renovation for, if experience is any guide, these clubs just need to lie low for a while until the pressure abates.
It is shocking that some parks and scenic areas can be privatized. In the case of West Lake, its sheer size makes such encroachment less noticeable.
Not so in the 2.2-hectare Xiangyang Park in Shanghai. Since early 2009, parts of the small park had been amalgamated into an expensive restaurant, in spite of repeated warnings from the district authority. The Oriental Morning Post reported in November 24, 2009, that Òlocal Xuhui District is stepping up its effort in rectificationÓ involving the restaurant. ThatÕs about the last we heard of Òrectification.Ó
The restaurant has since expanded upon on its earlier acquisitions, and installed ornamental lighting on giant plane trees nearby within the park, effectively extending its business reach at night.
If these business entities are illegally built on forbidden terrain, why is it that they cannot be legally pulled down?
The column title comes from the saying “One man’s meat is another man’s poison.”
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