7 most amazing bans in force in China

1. Movies about time travel and ghosts

For a long time, and more precisely since April 2011, China has a ban on the rental of films and TV shows about time travel. This strange decision was explained by the country's leadership as the need to prevent distortion of history and insult to Chinese culture.

The fact is that at that time, films whose characters moved from modern China to ancient China began to gather an increasing audience. And the government worriedthat such films could change the perception of ordinary Chinese about the past and negatively affect the collective consciousness of the nation.

No more hitmen in Comrade Mao's party apparatus or at the court of Emperor Qin Shi Huang.

But the movie ban isn't limited to the adventures of time travelers. Films with elements of feudalism, superstition and reincarnation, as well as those containing "horror, ghosts and the supernatural" fell under the restrictions. For example, in China

banned to show the pictures "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest", "Crimson Peak" and "Ghostbusters".

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) explained that "such pictures could undermine the stability and authority of the party and raise doubts about the strength and legitimacy of its regime." How films about walking skeletons and hitmen can undermine the foundations of society, the Chinese authorities did not specify, but, as they say, God saves the safe.

2. Peppa Pig

It would seem that the cartoon about Peppa Pig is a rather harmless thing, but in China it is banned. You see, there is a kind of “gangster” youth subculture in the country called “shehuiren” (translated as “people of society”), a kind of “boys from the district”.

Hooligans have chosen Peppa as their symbol, rivet all sorts of outrageous memes with her and even make tattoos with her.

Chinese media wrote about the fact that Peppa Pig fans do not share the prevailing values ​​in the country, they usually have a bad education and there is no stable job: "They are dishonest bums, vagabonds and the exact opposite of the younger generation that the Communist Party is trying to raise."

In general, the authorities decidedthat if you can’t deal with hooligans, then you can at least get rid of their symbols. Therefore, they cleaned out more than 30,000 Peppa cartoons from their video sharing platforms and banned the #PeppaPig hashtag from their social networks.

3. The Big Bang Theory series

The Big Bang Theory has become one of the most popular American comedies in China. But in 2014, the State Administration for Printing, Publication, Broadcasting, Film and Television (SARFT) banned show. It was removed from the country's largest streaming service Sohu, where sitcom By that time, it had over 1.3 billion views.

You see, in China there is also something like a subculture called "diaosi", which can be translate as "the frenulum of the penis."

This is such a derogatory slang term for a stereotypical loser - a poor guy with no job, a girl and clear plans for the future.

There are significantly more men than women in China due to the party's past "one family, one child" policy. Most parents chose abortion when they found out they were having a girl, because having a son was considered more profitable and prestigious than having a daughter. As a result, a fair number of restless children have formed in Chinese society, suffering from loneliness and lack of social and economic prospects. In 2013, for example, according to the Sohu service, more than 80% of respondents aged 30-39 identified themselves as "diaosi".

At the same time, the Chinese government considers them unreliable comrades. Instead of building a career, creating families and boosting the communist economy with demographics, these scumbags play their toys and watch Western cartoons.

And The Big Bang Theory shows these losers Sheldon Cooper and other timid but smart nerds, giving the "diaosi" the impression that it's normal and not ashamed to be like that. So the censors from SARFT decided to reduce the pernicious influence of the West on Chinese society at the expense of the popular series.

4. Cinema for adults

This is one of the oldest bans in force in the country. Pornography in the People's Republic of China forbidden since the founding of the socialist state in 1949. Anyone who produces, distributes or purchases obscene magazines, books and videos can be punished.

Usually punished only with a fine and a warning.

But not always. In 2005, the creator of the largest porn site in the country was sentenced to life imprisonment.

At the same time, it is not entirely clear that it is the Chinese authorities imply under pornography. The law on this issue is unclear: officials can prohibit anything that "violates public morality and harms the physical and mental health of young people." Most often, these are images and videos for adults, but sometimes fragments of books with frivolous content, and occasionally works of art that include nudity, fall under the ban.

The Chinese government diligently filters porn on the Internet, which is why street markets in the country are still enjoy popular DVD with porn movies, as well as books with erotic scenes. For example, the classic work of Chinese literature of the 17th century, The Golden Lotus, which was on the list of banned because of its overtly sexual nature.

5. Erotic banana eating

Not only the demonstration of sex is a danger to Chinese public morality. In 2016, Beijing CCTV informedthat the authorities have banned live broadcast platforms from showing videos of young female hosts seductively eating bananas. This ban has become part of the fight against vulgar, violent and sexual content on the Chinese Internet.

Now, Chinese streaming platforms such as DouYu, Panda.tv and YY are required to constantly ensure that girls who create video content do not eat oblong fruits in the frame. They were also banned from wearing miniskirts and revealing tops. There is nothing to corrupt the communist society.

6. Alpaca Puns

Puns are also banned in China. Not all, of course, just some.

In 2009 the Chinese government tried fight against profanity on the Internet by turning on filters against obscene words on popular sites. In response, Chinese users continued to swear, but allegorically - with the help of puns.

Soon on Baidu Baike, the Chinese version of Wikipedia, appeared comic article with various puns. Because of the complexity of the Chinese language, many otherwise innocuous words can be transformed into very indecent, and this feature of speech serves as an occasion for countless jokes among the Chinese themselves.

The article described imaginary animals whose names may sound ambiguous. One of these indecent phrases is “dirty grass horse”, which was presented in the form of an alpaca. It sounds like "caonima" and is similar to "cao ni ma" which means "your mother!" in Mandarin. The alpaca eats "fertile grass" "wo cao", which also means "copulate". And she lives in the desert "male gebi", which, to put it mildly, can sound like a "vagina".

An article that taught users to swear and bypass Internet filters made a splash on the Chinese Internet.

About the "dirty grass horse" began to rivet memes, music videos and cartoonsgarnering millions of views. In addition, some Chinese manufacturers have begun to produce plush alpaca toys and other souvenirs.

But after some time, jokes about alpaca on the Chinese Internet were also prohibitedbecause puns have been used to mock the CCP. Party members were called river crabs "hexie", which also means "hooligan, fighter, getting his fists." And alpacas allegedly do not like crabs and fight them.

In general, in March 2009, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television of China issued a directive prohibiting online content that may “incite ethnic discrimination or undermine social stability". The list of censored information also includes jokes about alpaca.

7. Unauthorized reincarnation

Yes, there is such a ban in China at the legislative level. If you joke about being a pharaoh or some other interesting person in a past life, the Chinese government may contact you to appear serious questions.

Anyone who claims to have reincarnated from a past life or wishes to be reincarnated in the next must get permission from the state and follow the rules established by Order No. 5 of the State Bureau of Religious Affairs of China.

The ban on unauthorized reincarnation is, in fact, aimed at one single person - the current Dalai Lama, the spiritual mentor of Tibetan Buddhists. He has fallen out of favor with the Chinese government and has already declared that, on principle, he will not be reborn in China.

It is important to the PRC that the next Dalai Lama be a Chinese citizen, so the party decided to ban anyone from being reborn in the wrong place.

If Tenjing Gyamtsho, the current Dalai Lama, dies, Buddhist the monks will start searching for the baby he was reborn into, and he will become the new leader. And the CCP may not recognize him and appoint their own Dalai Lama. Perhaps in the future, Tibetan Buddhists will have two mentors, of which one is approved by China.

In world history, this has already used to - with the popes of Rome, when from 1378 to 1417 three pontiffs claimed the Vatican throne at once: Pope Urban VI, Antipope Clement VII and Antipope Alexander V. And the Dalai Lama will probably somehow figure out where he can reincarnate.