(LI SHIGONG)

During the past National Day holiday (October 1-7), north China's Shanxi Province presented various tourism programs to attract tourists from home and abroad. The highlight is undoubtedly Pingyao County's ancient-style ceremony of welcoming visitors. The mayor of the county dressed up as a county official in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) to meet visitors on the streets of the ancient city.

Pingyao is an ancient city with a history of more than 2,700 years. The local government said the ancient-style ceremony of welcoming guests helps to boost the cultural characteristic of the city and welcome tourists in a way that fits the city.

The behavior of Pingyao's mayor has aroused heated debate among the public. Supporters said it showed the local government's emphasis on the development of tourism. But opponents said the behavior of the mayor might spread feudal thought that is unfit for our time.

Good idea

Sun Xunbo (www.ce.cn): There is nothing wrong for the county mayor to play the role of an ancient official. He's just playing a role dressed up in a special costume. As the mayor has said, playing the role is just the first step to improve the welcoming ceremony. The purpose of doing so is to make Pingyao a more attractive city. We need to notice that the mayor played the role during his National Day holiday. With so many tourists around him, this action surely has impressed more people than it would in other times. As the local county head, the mayor took the lead in welcoming tourists in a special manner. This fully reflects the local government's emphasis on local economic development.

Anyway, he has really done something different from those officials who appear to be very enthusiastic about economic growth, but actually seldom do anything, let alone work during the holiday. How many of today's officials have the nerve to risk being criticized?

Caogenshi (www.sina.com.cn): Some people criticized the mayor's behavior was as too showy, which affected the mayor's normal work and wasted public resources. However, in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with the mayor's deeds. First, he did this during the public holiday and did not use the work time. Second, the mayor did nothing that made him look superior to the public. Third, if the government invited celebrities or professional actors to play an ancient official, it would pay a lot of money. In this sense, the mayor saved public expenses for the city.

From the perspective of tourists, the effect of the mayor's behavior is positive. When the mayor led the local officials to meet the public, the tourists got excited and were eager to take pictures with those "actors." Such promotion for local tourism deserves applause.

It's unnecessary to be so sensitive to the mayor's role-playing. What we need to ask is why his actions hurt some people's feelings and even triggered many disputes. Maybe there is really something wrong with China's overall official team.