Xi surrounded by the public

Xi in a car waving to the public

China’s new president, Xi Jinping, paid a visit to Shenzhen, China’s most burgeoning Southern city in Guangdong province over the weekend. This was no small tour. Xi was literally stepping in Deng Xiaoping’s footprints twenty years ago, when/where Deng delivered one of his most important speeches, three years after Tian’anmen, in which he reassured China’s course to a marketing economy and its deeper integration into the global economy. New to the most powerful position in China (and some might argue the second most powerful position globally), Xi was quick to take advantage of the 20th anniversary of Deng’s speech in Southern China and acted like the incarnation of Deng in 1992. He was even accompanied by four of the former officials who accompanies Deng during Deng’s tour when he visited Deng’s memorial in Shenzhen.

Like Deng, Xi reassured China’s reform and opening up policy. “The Party and the Central government have made the correct decision of reform and opening up,” Xi said on this tour, “in the future we will still take this correct way; we will go in this way to an affluent country and an affluent people with conviction and determination, and we will have innovation.”

However, besides the speech, Chinese media have also focused their coverage on Xi’s image as an approachable and low-key leader who cares about ordinary people’s lives. Headlines about Xi’s Tour read like “Xi Jinping Touring Shenzhen, No Roads Blocked for Security,” “Visiting Families in Poverty in Shuide City, Giving Children English Dictionary,” “Visiting Residents in Luohu Fishing Village, Encouraging Villagers to Continue Walking on Deng Xiaoping’s Way,” “Visiting Shenzhen, No Welcoming Parade, No Banners,” and “Opened Window and Waved Goodbye to the Public, Shenzhen Netizen Meeting President.” Xi’s photos surrounded by the public are posted on news websites, and accounts about “foreign media’s” positive opinions about Xi. There also Xi’s family photos published, which is very rare in Chinese media.

Efforts to create a personable image for Chinese top leaders have been rare. Xi may showcase a shift in how Chinese approach politics as the public has been gaining more power–if not substantial, at least in speech–in China’s politics. This could be a positive shift, but at the same time, the image-oriented way of doing politics as most well represented in the U.S. is perhaps not the best option to promote democracy either. The worst, though, will be a marriage between sophisticated image management and highly centralized power structure. For now, it seems that Chinese and the Western media are enjoying a rare common ground that sees Xi representing a possibly more liberal future of China.

The photos that got Wang, a 23-year old model in China, in serious trouble

We live in a world that’s anything but shy of conflicts. That’s why I’m constantly amazed by how much we citizens of the world share many similarities in our taste in uniforms. We love babes in police uniforms, I mean, both Americans (Hello, Magic Mike!) and Chinese, except, while posting sexy photos of oneself wearing, or almost wearing, a police uniform on the social media can get one a few followers and likes, or, with some luck, the status of the “Internet sensation,” in China, that can actually get one some sweet jail time. That’s how “dignified” the Chinese police uniform is. Or not.

That’s what happened to Wang, a 23-year old model who was convicted on the charge of “fraud” — for the lack of an appropriate translation for zhaoyaozhuangpian zui, or 招摇撞骗罪 — and sentenced to 9 months in prison with a one-year reprieve by a district court in Beijing earlier this week. A few months ago, Wang posted on Weibo as @馨儿徽安:

I became a police officer in my hometown, and everything is starting from zero, so I’m learning very hard. As a jinghua (or a “police flower,” a term used in China to refer to female police officers — author), I have a lot of presure on me… Jinghua is just a title. I use these titles such as “jinghua” or “model” for business negotiations at the dinner table, and get deals and investment.

To this post, Wang also attached three photos of herself wearing a police reniform and bikinis.

Wang was reported to Weibo by a user and her post was flagged as “false information” by the website’s administrator. The post was taken down by Wang shortly after, and by then it had been reposted and commented on for hundreds of times, which was, however, pretty inconsequential considering Weibo’s 300 million users.

It’s unusual for somebody to be prosecuted for a post that has so little impact. In fact, Wang is reported to be the first in China who has been sentenced to prison for posing as a police officer online. Many people expressed on Weibo that they think the punishment she received is too severe for her deed. “I don’t think [Wang] should have been punished so severely. Wang was just wearing a police uniform; she didn’t con anybody out of money,” as @笔者楚觉非V commented on Weibo.

The problem with the case, however, is not just about the degree of punishment, but about principles too. What really constitutes “fraud” in China is unclear, both in principle and in this specific case. As a netizen @lucan路璨 has pointed out, Wang has stated in her profile (and her account is “verified” for her identity) that she’s a model. If she did reveal her true identity, that means that she didn’t have the serious intent to mislead others to believe her false identity as police officer. In that case, her posing would be a performance — Wang herself also stated herself that she did it just “for fun” — rather than serious impersonation, or fraud.

If that’s the case, Wang shouldn’t be punished for “fraud,” an opinion shared by some netizens, such as @lucan路璨, who wrote, “Please tell me which law prohibits people from wearing police costume?” Technically, @lucan路璨 was right. Wang’s “uniform” was just a “costume” that she kept after a photo shoot where she was hired to pose in it. So where should we draw the line between performance and fraud? Or, in other words, where should we draw the line between speech and action, for performance is a form of speech, while impersonation is an act?

Now, speech can be the basis for legal action in China, but many Chinese are aware of the lack of freedom of speech in China and their expressions of grievances and demands for the rights to free speech are not rare in online discourse in recent years. However, unfortunately, few have brought up the issue of speech in the debates surrounding Wang’s case. (I have made some comments on Weibo about Wang’s case and free speech. The responses I got were pretty negative and off the point.)

A couple of people did bring up the idea of “thought crime.”

One of them is @NOD净化者, who wrote, “Faint. Only when there’s a victim who has been conned and when her action resulted in serious consequences should we use the Criminal Law. Should we prosecute people for thought crimes?”

@NOD净化者‘s comment is in response to the comments by a user who claims to represent “Central China University Law School Student Union” (@华中大法学院学生会), who supported the court’s decision because “many countries have criminal laws that include crimes of impersonating public servants.”

However, even if the question of speech is put aside, the truth is, Wang is not in trouble just because she’s an impostor, but also because she’s a “slut.” Not only her originally post attracted much criticism, but even after she was convicted, many continued to attack her unsympathetically:

This whore wants a good reputation. Die! — @东坑家人.

[Wang] deserted morality for fame? So sad. — @-必修课.

Look, [you’re] obsessed to be famous, and can’t you be famous in jail now? This is what you get by following the fad. — @zeeyorl

Stupid, you deserve it. Hahaha… Still want to show off, want to be famous? — @红烬Ash

It is safe to read these allegations as misogynistic vent of anger, jealousy, and hatred, from both men and women. Sexism, coupled with the good old authoritarianism, are what Wang is truly up against.

@笔者楚觉非V‘s comment seems to have hit the hail on the head here:

As to her indecent poses, they got her in jail because she tarnished the image of people’s police force. [However,] imagine if Wang was dressed up as a nurse, a teacher, or a maid; would she be punished like this? No. They’re all occupations, but are treated so differently. Why?

The logic behind this hypocrisy is that it’s acceptable to degrade nurses, teachers and maids — occupations traditionally taken by women — but it’s a crime to degrade police officers — an occupation traditionally taken by men — remember? A woman police officer is sexualized as a “police flower” — and, more importantly, an occupation that represents the state and its (masculine) power over its people.

The truth is, Wang’s offense doesn’t lie in her posing as what she is not. There have been plenty of images of beautiful young women and men posing as police officers “with dignity” in the public space but no one would have even bothered to ask whether they are models or real police officers. There’s also plenty of sexy photos that can be considered way more indecent than her photos floating online, but rarely anybody has gotten into trouble with the law for them. (“What if she didn’t wear any clothes? What would that be? Pornography, body art, or body painting… I want to ask how many years can she get for that?” as @烦人先生2447486305 asked.) Wang’s offense lies in her juxtaposing an image of a desired — sexually objectified — young woman with the image of the police force. At the same time, she dared to do so with a certain “shameless” spectacle. And that — THAT is the worst HUMILIATION thrown in the face of the stern-faced paternal state. (Even the name of her crime, zhaoyaozhuangpian zui, screams out this frustration of a self-righteous patriarch. Literally, zhaoyao means to bluff, to show off, or to parade. Zhuangpian means to con, to trick, or to swindle.)

“Don’t you repeatedly make fun of the system. [Remember,] the system has power,” as netizen @林水邑风 wrote. Read: if you dare to disgrace the state, you’re going to jail.

Yes, we Chinese love our “face.”

In the past, this love for “face” was largely metaphorical. In recent years, however, to Chinese, especially young Chinese, the importance of “face” is becoming more literal than ever. With the growing appeal of entertainment and celebrity culture, Chinese youth seem to be increasingly obsessed with good looks. The employment and gender inequality has given rise to a culture that disproportionately values outer beauty, especially in young women.

A reality show featuring "artificial beauties" was canceled by media authorities in 2007.

The lure–and pressure–of having a beautiful face and an attractive figure has motivated tens of thousands of young Chinese to go under the knife each year, spending millions of dollars of cool cash for a hot look that they hope will bring them, if not fortune and fame, at least job opportunities and love. According to Phoenix TV (ZH), China has become the third biggest market of plastic surgery in the world after the U.S. and Brazil. From 2009 to 2010, 3.4 millions of plastic surgery procedures were conducted in China. In 2010, the plastic surgery in China was already a 300 billion yuan ($47.7 billion) industry that employed more than 20 million people. The industry has a 40% annual growth and its suppliers boast a staggering 60% annual growth in sales.

Besides those who undergo plastic surgery in China, other Chinese chose to do it in South Korea, a country with the world’s highest per capital rate of cosmetic plastic surgery. According to the statistics from the Korean Embassy in China, in 2011, Korea issued 1,073 visas (ZH) to Chinese citizens who would travel to Korea in order to undergo plastic surgery.

The burgeoning celebrity culture in China feeds young Chinese’s curiosity and interest in plastic surgery. News, gossips and speculations about celebrities’ faces have become popular topics online, often accompanied with before-and-after photos for comparison.

Recently, Faye Wong, the legendary pop icon who is known for her unique style and uncompromising attitude towards media, is at the center of speculations. Gossips about whether Wong has gone under the knife to fix her nose and chin are circulating wildly online and getting mixed reactions from fans. Some are surprised that even the unearthly “goddess” of pop has resorted to plastic surgery, something that only lowbrow (su, 俗) celebrities seek. Other fans, however, respond with understanding and respect. “Online on-lookers love meaningless gossips. Whether or not the icon Faye Wong has undergone plastic surgery is none of anybody else’s business,” a fan wrote on Weibo.

Nevertheless, plastic surgery is almost an open secret in the entertainment circle. Many aspiring young men and women won’t hesitate to spend money and go through painful procedures to change their looks so that they have better chance in their career. This trend compelled Beijing Film Academy, the number one film school in China, to announce before its entrance examinations this year that students who had tattoos or had undergone plastic surgery would be disqualified for admission. “The changes in their faces or other parts of the body, and the tattoos too, might affect their performance when they are trying to depict a figure in a play,” Wang Jinsong, deputy director of the Performance Institute of the academy, told China Daily.

The popularity of plastic surgery, however, isn’t just among those who work in entertainment. Gender inequality and employment pressure for young women have forced some of them to consider plastic surgery seriously. It is almost an unspoken rule that some employers tend to hire female employees based on their looks more than their educational and professional merits. “They may not say it openly, but during the process they will pick the prettier one,” a college graduate, who had her eye lids worked on told Los Angeles Times.

Sadly, the great value society puts in women’s looks has created image issues for many young women in China. Although society respect strong, intelligent and capable women, many Chinese men still consider physically attractive women who are less capable than they are more desirable than otherwise as their partners. In the first-tier cities where single women outnumber single men (7:1) and where young people have more disposable income, as many young women feel great pressure to have good looks and a slim body more than anything else, plastic surgery looks more and more like a viable option to happiness and security to young women. In a recent post on zhuansoo.com, an online community for Chinese students who are interested in studying overseas, the author asks, “Should female students go and study abroad or save the money to get plastic surgery?” According to her, almost all male students who responded to a post she came across had said that they would choose a pretty girl who was only interested in beauty, shopping and fashion as their girlfriend over a plain-looking but academically successful girl. “Is face really that important?” the author is confused.

However, image is not only an issue for young women. More and more Chinese government officials, both men and women, are also rushing to go under the knife so that they will look younger, thinner, and more attractive. Caring more and more about their image, these official hope that plastic surgery will improve their popularity among the public and hide the signs of aging.

As more Chinese are willing to invest in their looks each year, health experts have warned the public of the risks related to plastic surgery, especially in a country where poisonous milk power and fake cooking oil are not rare cases that scare the public on a daily basis. In fact, in the past ten years, on average, 20 thousand cases of medical malpractice claims were filed each year, which amounted to a total of 200 thousand faces destroyed in China. In 2010, a reality show starlet died from a medical accident during a plastic surgery procedure, which raised the awareness of the negative impact of the craze for artificial beauty on Chinese youth’s mental and physical health.

Recently, on a special topic page on Weibo, netizens are asked whether they will choose to undergo plastic surgery considering its benefits and risks. The topic became one the most popular on the website, which has received 3,419,100 responses.

Although most of those who responded still prefer “natural beauty,” they are also open to surgery, being aware of the risks. However, now, one may take more caution and think twice before she/he lets anybody cut open her/his face or body: “if you’re to undergo these procedures, you must first verify the source of the products and whether the service provider is a professional institution so as to reduce the risks,” as a netizen warns.