China Local News

Pregnant Woman Causes Havoc In Beijing Subway Because There’s No Seat

A pregnant woman has caused havoc in the Beijing subway today when nobody would give up their seat for her. Incidents of aggression at Beijing’s most busy subway line are nothing new; cases often involve young women.

Published

9 years ago

September 1, 2016

Manya Koetse

Netizens have filmed how a pregnant woman sat in between the doors of a Beijing subway train because she was angry that nobody would give up their seat for her.

The incident occurred on line 10 on the day of September 1. The woman allegedly said she was pregnant, and when people did not stand up to give her a seat, she complained to subway staff and blocked the doors by sitting in between them, preventing the train from leaving.

Line 10 is the longest and most-used train line within Beijing’s subway system, which is one of the busiest metros in the world. With about 9.75 million passengers riding the Beijing subway lines each day, trains can get incredibly cramped.

In the video, you can hear passengers saying that it is peak hour and that people are in a rush to leave.

Beijing’s subway often has to deal with angry and aggressive passengers. Overcrowded trains and stations can lead to outbursts of aggression from hurried passengers. According to local officers, many incidents involve female passengers, especially of women aged between 20-30; this group accounts for approximately one-third of all fights at Beijing’s most busy transit station.

For the local police, intervening in these fights is often difficult and time-consuming. Local officers handle female-related violence differently from when there is an altercation between men, as they have previously told Beijing Times.

When aggression involves men, the police will normally let passengers cool off and then mediate by letting them talk to each other, which generally solves the case within ten minutes. When dealing with violent outbursts amongst young women, however, the passengers have to be taken apart to avoid further escalation. An officer will hear their stories separately to win their trust and settle the case. The disputes are often more complicated because the passengers want to be compensated for dirty clothes or missed hours at work. Mediation for these cases generally takes the police over half an hour.

The case of the pregnant woman was not much different. According to Caijing Economy, she finally left after local police calmed her down and talked to her.

“Maybe it would be sensible to have given her a seat, but there is no legal obligation to do so!” one Weibo netizen responds. “Being pregnant may not be easy, but it’s nobody’s duty to give up their seat!”, other commenters say.

“I am also pregnant and I don’t understand this woman’s behaviour at all,” another netizen says.

– By Manya Koetse
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China Local News

The Liaoyang Restaurant Fire That Killed 22 People

Published

1 month ago

April 29, 2025

Manya Koetse

🔥 Quick Take: Trending in China – Week 18
This is a brief update from our curated roundup of what’s trending in China this week. A version of this story also appears in the Weibo Watch newsletter. Subscribe to stay in the loop.

An enormous fire that happened at a restaurant in Liaoning’s Liaoyang on the afternoon of April 29 (see video) has gone top trending on Chinese social media, mainly due to the fact that it caused so many fatalities.

By 7pm, Chinese official media reported that the fire, which happened at 12:25 in the city’s Baita district, had killed 22 people. Three people were injured.

The fire started on the second floor of the restaurant Sanli Chuniang (三里厨娘/Sanli Chef’s Daughter) on Minzhu Road (民主路) and quickly spread throughout the entire two-story brick-concrete structure, which covers an area of about 260 square meters. The windy weather also played a part in how quickly the fire spread. The fire broke out around lunchtime, when there were many customers.

The restaurant before and after the fire.

Some sources on Xiaohongshu report that, according to witnesses, toxic smoke filled the entire building in less than five minutes. The thick smoke, small spaces inside the two-story building, and limited escape routes — some of which were allegedly blocked — all contributed to the high number of fatalities. Some victims were reportedly just ten meters away from the exit, yet still failed to escape.

According to Caixin, the restaurant’s second floor had several private rooms without windows.

To make matters worse, some nearby vehicles were not moved in time, hindering the rescue operations.

Sanli Chuniang was a locally popular restaurant serving various Chinese dishes, snacks, and dumplings. It was in business since 2016.

On social media, many commenters are expressing shock and sadness over the deadly fire. They also want answers into why there seemed to have been little to no fire safety precautions at the establishment.

The last time a restaurant fire with many fatalities made major headlines in China was in 2023, when a gas explosion inside a BBQ restaurant in Yinchuan resulted in 31 deaths. Nine people, including the restaurant owner, were later arrested in connection with the fire and the lack of safety precautions.

Some reports on the Liaoyang restaurant fire have now been removed, but it appears that the restaurant had been operating illegally since 2023 and that its fire safety inspections were not up to date.

Guancha reported that while the cause of the fire is still under investigation, the restaurant owner has been taken into custody.

🔄 Update 1: Chinese leader Xi Jinping issued a statement regarding the devastating fire, calling on local authorities to hold those responsible accountable and to properly handle matters related to the victims and console their families.

Premier Li Qiang also emphasized that local authorities across China should screen for fire hazards and strengthen safety measures to prevent such major accidents from occurring.

🔄 Update 2: Preliminary investigations have ruled out arson or gas leakage as the cause of the fire. The specific cause of the incident is still under investigation, focusing on leftover cigarette butts that might have started the fire or possible electrical faults. The restaurant’s furniture and interior materials were highly flammable, and strong winds outside caused the fire to spread quickly and block the exits. This made it difficult for those trapped inside to escape. Most victims died from asphyxiation after inhaling large amounts of toxic smoke in a short time.

As definite results have not yet been issued at the time of writing (May 6), some netizens are wondering: “When can we expect to hear more?”

By Manya Koetse

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China Local News

Aftermath of Suzhou Marathon’s “Pissing Gate”

Published

2 months ago

April 24, 2025

Manya Koetse

🔥 Quick Take: Trending in China – Week 17
This is a brief update from our curated roundup of what’s trending in China this week. A version of this story also appears in the Weibo Watch newsletter. Subscribe to stay in the loop.

It has already been over seven weeks since the Suzhou Marathon took place, but it was trending again today in light of a statement that has come out regarding a particular situation.

During the March 2nd Suzhou Marathon, which had over 25,000 participants, images and videos went viral showing how some runners stopped to take a toilet break and urinated against the main sign of the Jiangsu Suzhou Experimental Middle School (江苏省苏州实验中学).

At the time, the Suzhou Marathon soon released an official statement denouncing the “uncivilized” behavior of the runners.

Other images showed that there were portable toilets set up along the route, but even there, there were runners urinating in public.

Portable toilets along the route.

Runner urinating behind the portable toilets.

On April 24, the Chinese Athletics Association (中国田径协会, CAA), the national governing body for athletics in China, issued a statement saying that, according to the association’s disciplinary regulations, ten participants who urinated against the school sign have been banned from participating in any marathon affiliated with the CAA for the next three years, until March 1, 2028.

The Chinese Athletics Association further stated that they have decided to revoke Suzhou Marathon’s eligibility to apply for event certification in 2026.

Although most online commenters agree that the runners should be punished for their behavior, some also note that it seems “unfair” that Suzhou Marathon also cannot apply for organizing its 2026 marathon:

💬 “(..) because of the uncivilized behavior of just 10 people, Suzhou Marathon’s eligibility to apply for certification from the Chinese Athletics Association in 2026 was directly cancelled. Isn’t this kind of penalty a bit unfair to Suzhou? After all, just 20 meters away from where those people were peeing, there were many portable toilets set up.”

Just around the corner from where the runners urinated in public, there were plenty of portable toilets set up.

Where they peed against the wall, and the toilets nearby.

The punishment for the Suzhou Marathon seems to be a classic case of “killing the chicken to scare the monkey” (杀鸡儆猴): a drastic measure that sends a clear message to other marathons. Not only should they provide plenty of portable toilets, but they must also enforce measures or assign staff to ensure that another “pissing gate” doesn’t happen in the future.

By Manya Koetse with contributions by Miranda Barnes

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