Suspected prostitutes and a few men accused of being pimps were paraded through the streets of Shenzhen two weeks ago as part of a crackdown. Associated Press Photograph
Very few words are needed from me to point you to an article in The New York Times about the resurrection of a shameful old remedy to render a face-saving slap at the world's oldest profession in Shenzhen, China, and what many of today's Chinese citizens have to say about it.
As Vice Dragnet Recalls Bad Old Days, Chinese Cry Out
SHANGHAI, Dec. 12 -- For people who saw the event on television earlier this month, the scene was like a chilling blast from a past that is 30 years distant: social outcasts and supposed criminals -- in this case 100 or so prostitutes and a few pimps -- paraded in front of a jeering crowd, their names revealed, and then driven away to jail without trial.
The act of public shaming was intended as the first step in a two-month campaign by the authorities in the southern city of Shenzhen to crack down on prostitution.
But the event has prompted an angry nationwide backlash, with many people making common cause with the prostitutes over the violation of their human rights and expressing outrage in one online forum after another.
So-called rectification campaigns, or struggle sessions, like these were everyday occurrences during the Cultural Revolution, which officially ended in 1976.
