Moments of love prove costly

Press, 12 October 1988, Page 10

Moments of love prove costly

NZPA-AFP Beijing Stolen moments for love can be costly in China, according to a report in the official “People’s Daily.” A young man and his girlfriend were embracing on a patch of grass in a park in the eastern city of Najing one night when a blinding light suddenly appeared from the bushes, the newspaper reported yesterday. “I am from the park management,” a heavy-set man told the startled couple. “Do you want to come back to the office to register and pay a fine or do you just want to pay the fine here?”

Afraid of being reported for having pre-marital contact in a society which frowns on such acts, the couple paid 15 yuan ($6) on the spot. They later discovered that the “security man” had blackmailed them, along with 100 other couples, by playing on their embarrassment. Such blackmailers made an average of 50 yuan a night — about half the average monthly salary in China. The report coincides with frequent accounts of widespread racketeering and profiteering in China.