China Is A Free Country

Beijing store sparks racism row... by banning Chinese customers

A clothing store in Beijing has sparked a bizarre race row by banning Chinese customers from the premises for being "too annoying".

The sign on the front door of the store on Yabao Road reading "Chinese not admitted - staff excluded" appeared more than a week ago, the Beijing Youth Daily reported yesterday after receiving complaints from residents.

"We didn't want to hang up the sign in the first place and lead people to think we Chinese look down upon ourselves. But some Chinese customers are too annoying," a salesperson told the paper, adding that the wholesale store mainly sells to foreigners.

Legal scholar Li Xiandong, of the China University of Political Science and Law, told the Beijing Youth Daily that while the sign was discriminatory, the mainland had not outlawed racial discrimination, so the sign was not breaking any laws.