Jane Macartney in Beijing
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There are several traditional ways to reach the front of a queue in China. People push, shove, jostle, elbow and even punch their way. The methods rarely, if ever, include standing in line. Until yesterday.
“To queue is civilised, to be polite is glorious,” was the mobile phone text message to which Beijing residents awoke.
Across the capital, middle-aged women in red jackets beat on drums, waved flags and danced to herald the start of the newest Communist Party campaign: Queueing Day.
With the 2008 Beijing Olympics around the corner and national prestige at stake, officials from the Capital Ethic Development Office designed a campaign to give the city’s 15 million inhabitants lessons in civility. “It’s true. We don’t have this habit of queueing in China,” Liu Shuping, from the Chongwen district passenger office, said. “But with the Olympics coming, this is changing.”
Zhang Huiguang, director of the development office, addressed a crowd of volunteers in Beijing before they fanned out to take up their posts at nearby bus stops.
“We want to be on our best behaviour for the Olympics,” she said. The volunteers and traffic wardens, standing in uneven lines, responded with gusto: “I pledge to participate voluntarily and to queue up voluntarily and to be a civilised citizen to win glory for the homeland and bring honour for the Olympics.” Queueing Day in the capital will take place on the 11th of each month — officials decided that the figure looked like two people standing in line.
Wang Hongmei, with her sash reading “Supervisor of Riding Politely”, was in charge at the Chongwen street bus stop. “What bus are you catching? No 43? Then go up there, that’s your queue. Please stand in line,” she shouted at bemused commuters. Her panels with bus numbers flew up like paddles to pat stragglers into line. The bus drew up but Ms Wang’s back was turned as she barked out commands to new arrivals. The queue for the No 43 wavered and broke.
But Wang Xinglan said that she was happy to wait in a queue for the bus. “Before it used to be chaos, but now it’s not nearly such a crush. Even buying train tickets is a little better.” Her queue climbed on to the bus in demure single file.
Discussion was heated on a morning radio show. One host said: “It’s a tragedy that we have to have a Queueing Day in Beijing. This should be our natural behaviour.”
In the western Xicheng district, banners read: “Voluntarily wait in line, be polite and put others first.” Those in northwestern Haidian simply say: “I am a member of the queue.”
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When in China, I never thought there was much difference in the etiquette of queueing to that in London. There were all the things a British person would feel at home with, down to the angry shouting at the lack of tickets available and the sense of 'one more step' urgency. Although if somebody tried to push in they would get more than a stern look and several loud 'tut-tut's' as a queue at the main train station revealed. Just short of ABH was inflicted on the offender. Our culture can indeed learn from the Chinese.
Matthew, London,