Rule breaking should not be condoned

Tourists stretch to walk on a 69-meter-long glass pathway built along the face of a cliff in Shaohuashan national forest park in Weinan city, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, July 28, 2016.[Photo/Xinhua]

TWO CHINESE MALE TOURISTS were reportedly detained for clashing with the local police in Sydney, Australia, after they were found urinating in public at the city's Royal Botanic Gardens. Beijing Times commented on Thursday:

That the two tourists were detained and put on trial in Australia after they urinated in public may come as a shock to many Chinese, because they are no stranger to such indecencies at home. Some marathon runners, both Chinese and foreign, even did that against the Forbidden City walls during the Beijing International Marathon.

But those Chinese holidaymakers who violate local laws while traveling abroad and end up with harsh punishments should not be judged simply by what they did. What led to their unpleasant traveling experience is the fact that a "minor" violation of rules in their eyes, which they would normally get away with at home, is taken seriously in many countries, especially in the West.

The bitter truth is, many are either used to breaking the rules for personal convenience when at home, or else are beneficiaries of rule breaking that ranges from queue-jumping and plagiarism to rent-seeking and power-for-money exchanges. Some have been held accountable and given due punishments, but that has not stopped people from trying to take such short cuts.

The regulations of other countries leave less room for such misdeeds as they are more specific. In Australia, as the two Chinese tourists found out, attempting to flee from the police's intervention may involve a trial in court. Tourists should be fully aware that other countries may be less forgiving of even minor infractions of the law.

This should prompt more to reflect on China's social governance, which should rest not only on the country's economic rise but also people's respect for the law.