Photo: Weibo

Government officials in Suzhou, East China's Anhui Province apologized on Monday for releasing photos of people wearing pajamas in public and calling their actions "uncivilized behavior," which sparked online furor. 

The city's management bureau on Monday published photos taken by street cameras of seven people wearing pajamas in public, along with their names, ID cards, and other information. 

Netizens argued that there was nothing wrong with wearing pajamas in public. They also questioned whether the government infringed on the residents' privacy by releasing their personal information.

It was later explained that Suzhou is competing for the National Civilized City title and banned residents from wearing pajamas in public. 

"We wanted to put an end to uncivilized behavior, but of course we should protect residents' privacy," said the bureau and promised to blur the exposed residents to avoid such problems. 

As of press time, the posts were deleted amid online criticism. The city management bureau issued a "sincere apology" on Monday night, and said that publishing such information was inappropriate. The original post was retracted and officials said that it wouldn't happen again.  

Liu Changsong, a lawyer, said the city management bureau went too far. 

"If residents exposed themselves in public, they should be punished, but if they just wear strange clothes, the government should be tolerant," Liu said.