A new traffic campaign initiated by police in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, was put in place to address the ever growing number of cases where drivers turn on their high beams at will, much to the chagrin of some Chinese netizens.
According to a new “high-beam” campaign, which officially began on Tuesday, drivers who arbitrarily turn on their high beams would be asked by local police to sit on a special green chair imprinted with slogans and look at the dazzling headlights for one minute as specific punishment. They would also be fined 300 yuan (44 US dollars), along with one penalty point on their driving licenses.
The campaign to control high beams is expected to be routinely carried out at least once a week in an attempt to help drivers understand the harm and potential danger they would cause while arbitrarily turning on their glaring high beams, and to be more aware about safety, according to Shenzhen police.
As of 10:00 p.m. local time Tuesday, 932 local drivers have been subjected to the special “punishment” during the two-hour debuted campaign.
The high beam enforcement, has swept across social media in China and triggered heated discussion after photos capturing drivers sitting in front of their car with the high beams on were posted online. While some netizens have felt the campaign is necessary, others have questioned the legitimacy of carrying out this punishment, that would potentially harm the drivers’ eyesight.
Some feedback from netizens are captured here…
- “The campaign should have been implemented much earlier,” @Sword-unsheathing commented on weibo account, adding that those drivers deserve the punishment since they turned on the high beams only for their own convenience, while never taking others’ safety”
- “we shall never extend our sympathy to those who have deliberately broken traffic rules.”
- “There are multiple ways to teach drivers a lesson for arbitrarily turning on high beams, but why should we specifically choose this one, which may impact their health,” @An Guanglu commented in a completely opposite position, expressing concern over the drivers’ health.
Liu Ming, from the publicity department of the Shenzhen police office, told reporters in response to netizens’ safety concerns that the so-called “punishment” of having drivers looking at the high beams is actually a voluntary experience, and not a compulsory punishment.
Wang Xu, a law professor from Renmin University of China, said the move is lawfully supported to some extent, since education and administrative penalties can be combined, according to the law, though the punishment of “looking straight into headlights” is not specifically included.
It may seem barbaric, but this measure could actually help deter people from the practice and as well sort of provide a means to have those who don’t understand the impact of using high beams also experienece it. I wish we had similar laws in Ghana and apply harsher punishments to law breakers. In the case of Ghana I feel the opportunity even exists to monitize the growing level of indiacinpline to the best of sense.
The enforcement may need better systems in place, a situation that is currently not exactly water tight, but for which such platforms as ezwish and national IDs could have actually help solve. Once more a case of broken foundation breaking any opportunity to straighten up the society. Lots and lots of stuff africa can learn from china… but alas, send politicians to china and they’d rather be busy sleeping or paying attention to all the wrong things.