Shops close en masse to avoid inspectors

By Li Xiang Source:Global Times Published: 2012-8-7 1:55:03

 

Small shop owners across Northeast China's Liaoning Province have been told to open their doors for business after many staged a shutdown to avoid snap inspections by local authorities.

Many shopkeepers and restaurant owners closed their doors over the weekend making them unavailable to inspectors conducting a campaign to crack down on counterfeit products.

Entrepreneurs feel the campaign is little more than a ticket-issuing spree that in some cases includes huge fines that they say are aimed mainly at replenishing city coffers.

An official from the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of the CPC Shenhe District Committee in the provincial capital Shenyang, who declined to be named, told the Global Times that the law enforcement campaign is being carried out across the province.

The official did not provide details on which government agencies are involved, or how long it will last.

A knitwear shop owner surnamed Li in the city of Yingkou told the Global Times that she closed her business on Friday and over the weekend after she heard inspectors were planning to sweep through the city on Sunday.

"As far as I know, the surprise check will last until the end of this year," Li added.

"Luckily, the situation in Yingkou is far better than in Shenyang. I already reopened my shop Monday," said Li.

A restaurant owner in Shenyang's Heping district, who declined to be identified, told the Global Times that the voluntary shutdown of small businesses across the provincial capital started on Saturday and expanded on Monday.

"I closed my eatery Monday to avoid the inspection, after I heard the campaign will last for a week in Shenyang. I'm worried about having to pay a huge fine for some reason or another," the owner said.

A posting on Sina Weibo said restaurants were being fined 5,000 yuan ($784) for giving clients single-use chopsticks without a lumber license.

The Global Times contacted three public security officials, none of whom would confirm that fines were being issued.

In a notice posted by a netizen on Weibo showed what was claimed to be an order from the Dongling branch of the Shenyang Public Security Bureau on Monday.

It said police officers were to persuade local shopkeepers and restaurant owners to reopen for business by 3 pm Monday.

The notice also told the branches under the city's public security bureau to report all the businesses that remained closed.

The posting had been reposted for some 10,000 times before it was deleted late Monday.

A police officer at the Dongling branch, who would not identify himself, confirmed to the Global Times the action to persuade business owners to reopen.

 

 



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