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State Council announces China to enjoy two 7-day national holidays
Chinese people will have a seven-day break for both National Day holidays and Spring Festival, according to the public holiday arrangements released by the State Council on December 12.

China's new holiday plan reflects public opinion
The Chinese government on December 12 unveiled holiday arrangements for 2014 after it sought opinions from the public through polls on major websites.

Holiday Arrangement

Comments

Polls
Over 84 percent of Net users said they were not satisfied with the arrangement, according to a Sina online poll, which over 39,000 people had participated as of press time. Meanwhile, 88 percent said they don't like the fact that the last day of the lunar calendar is not being counted as public holiday.
Discussion: are you satisfied with the holiday arrangement?
Xinhua News Agency: Yes The new arrangement preserves the seven-day holiday for National Day holidays and Spring Festival and avoids making later adjustments for short holidays. This arrangement takes public opinion into consideration and finds a balance between the needs and suggestions of the people.
Liu Simin, a research fellow with the Tourism Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences: Yes The announced arrangement is reasonable. In fact, many companies and organizations allow their staff to leave work around noon of the last day in the lunar calendar, which means people can have an extra half-day holiday.
Sina Weibo user 尔冬草：Yes Traditionally, Chinese New Year's Day is the beginning of the Spring Festival, so not having a holiday on New Year’s Eve is in line with Chinese tradition.
Sina Weibo user MiNEW_冥王荆：Yes I have worked on Chinese New Year’s Eve in the past, and I will do it again next year. Many people work that day. By offsetting everyone’s holiday, we can reduce the pressure of the Spring Festival rush.
Sina Weibo user fondant_christy：Yes In many foreign countries, Christmas Eve is not a public holiday.
Du Wei, associate professor at the College of Tourism and Service Management, Nankai University: No It is a positive step for the government to solicit public opinion on the holiday arrangement. However, according to comments online, authorities still need to make further adjustments to the scheme.
Sina Weibo user xlwb-Amy：No If Chinese New Year’s Eve is not being counted as a public holiday, people working far from home won’t be able to make it to their family reunion holiday dinners, watch the Spring Festival Gala and set off fireworks.
Sina Weibo user 晓蒙说事：No Chinese New Year’s Eve is the most important time of the Spring Festival where we have our traditional family dinners and hang Spring Festival calligraphy outside our doors.
Sina Weibo user 丁丁：No The public has called for Chinese New Year’s Eve to be counted as public holiday several years ago. Why would the government cancel the holiday this year? It neglects Chinese tradition.

Web editor: yangruoyu@globaltimes.com.cn