Screenshot of Sina Weibo

 
A group of actors dressed in PLA army uniforms at a Halloween gala in Harbin, Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province has sparked controversy on China's social networks, with many criticizing them for "disrespecting China's history." 

A video circulating on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo has drawn backlash as a group of actors dressed up as PLA soldiers performed on what appeared to be a Halloween-themed stage with words such as "Halloween carnival," "devils and ghosts," and "fooling around" written on the back board, guancha.cn reported on Monday. 

According to the Beijing Youth Daily, it was a Halloween event of the Harbin Wangfujing Shopping Center on Saturday.

Soon afterwards, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China and the China Anti-Cult Association commented on Weibo with nothing but question marks or emojis of an embarrassed face, ridiculing the event.

In response, the shopping center issued a statement on Monday, explaining that the event was hosted by the Chinese Cultural Information Association, and they were only providing the venue. 
 
The statement also said that the pictures posted online are not the real performance but a rehearsal. Due to the large number of performers and tight schedules, the activity was held in front of the Halloween-themed background.

"There is nothing wrong with celebrating Western festivals, and parents can bring their children to experience Western culture. However, we shall never disrespect or forget our national moral courage and history," a netizen said.

Another comment read, "Spoof does not mean disrespect to culture."

A staff at the shopping mall explained that the event was held in cooperation with a number of brands, and was not targeted at the theme of Halloween, Beijing Youth Daily reported. 


Global Times