Drinking ban sparks conversation in Dulongjiang township

A draft of a complete ban on the sales of alcoholic drinks in Dulongjiang township, Yunnan province, has attracted the attention of the public and raised questions about the legitimacy of the prohibition order by a township-level government.

The government of Dulongjiang township, under the administration of Gongshan Derung and Nu autonomous county, in Yunnan province, responded to the ban on Thursday. He Jinyi, Party chief of the township, said the draft was soliciting public opinions, and added the government would consult legal professionals and the county authority before taking it into effect.

"We would take a prudent approach before the ban is implemented," he said.

He said the aim of the document was to lead local people into a healthy lifestyle and establish a civil custom in the area.

"Of course, no matter in whatever formality, any restriction in this regard would be made in accordance to the laws," He said, adding the draft has gone viral online the past week.

"Starting from July 1, all alcoholic beverages – including home-made alcohol, liquor, beer, fruit wine and alcoholic beverage in cans – are prohibited from being sold in Dulongjiang township."

The restriction was made in a bid to reduce incidents including poverty caused by alcohol addiction, as well as traffic accidents and accidental injury, and family crisis caused by intoxication, as stated in the draft.

According to a news report by The Paper, a Shanghai-based news website, another restriction was issued in September, prohibiting government functionaries from drinking alcohol during official hours and forbidding residents from drinking after 10 pm. The government found some workers slacked off or started an altercation after drinking, the news report stated.

According to the official, the restriction was hard to implement as people had access to alcohol in restaurants after 10pm.

A comment published on iqilu.com said the ban wrongfully extended public power into private life and should not be the solution for the problems caused by drinking.

The writer of the comment, Dai Xianren, said supervision on government power must be supervised and relevant regulations on restricting the power must be established.

A similar comment on cjn.cn stated the ban was not the solution for reducing poverty and the local government should issue more incentives to encourage people to work for a wealthy life instead of putting a ban on drinking.