China fines three tourists who vandalised the Great Wall by scrawling their names on the landmark
- Two men and a woman were detained Sunday after vandalising the Great Wall
- The trio scrawled their names on Badaling, a popular section of the landmark
- They were fined up to 200 yuan (£22) for the offence
Three tourists who vandalised China’s Great Wall – one of the country’s most popular historic landmarks – have been detained and fined, officials said Monday.
Two men and a woman were detained Sunday after scrawling their names on the wall with a key, wire and other sharp objects, administrators of the Badaling special tourism zone said in a statement.
Around 43 miles from Beijing, Badaling is the most popular section of the wall for tourists.
The statement did not offer details on the amount they were fined or the length of their detention.
Two men and a woman were detained Sunday after scrawling their names on the wall with a key, wire and other sharp objects,
Under China’s law for protecting cultural relics the fine for carving or scrawling on a historic building is less than 200 yuan (£22)
Under China’s law for protecting cultural relics the fine for carving or scrawling on a historic building is less than 200 yuan (£22), but for serious damage offenders can be detained for up to 10 days and fined 500 yuan.
Construction of the Great Wall began in the third century BC to stave off Mongol invasions, and it spans over 21,000 kilometres.
Today it attracts around 10 million tourists per year – but the swell of visitors, combined with age and weathering, has left swathes of it in ruins.
Today it attracts around 10 million tourists per year – but the swell of visitors, combined with age and weathering, has left swathes of it in ruins
This isn’t the first time the relic has been damaged by misbehaving tourists.
A visitor was caught on camera defacing the historic site with a key last March, on the first day the Great Wall opened up for tourists after being closed for two months during the height of the pandemic, state-run Global Times reported.
Last April, the Beijing municipal government introduced a blacklist threatening to name and shame tourists who vandalised or damaged the wall.
As part of the scheme, those visitors would also be banned from revisiting the site for an undisclosed amount of time.
The Great Wall of China is one of the country’s most popular historic landmarks and usually receives an estimated 10 million visitors per year
The latest incident has sparked outrage on Chinese social media.
High profile visitors to China have also fallen foul of public opinion when it comes to the Great Wall.
In 2016, National Basketball Association (NBA) player Bobby Brown was forced to issue an apology after he sparked public anger by defacing the historic landmark.
The athlete posted a picture of a popular part of the Wall, where he had etched his signature and uniform number.
His actions led to an outpouring on the Chinese social media site Sina Weibo, where he posted the picture.
One user told him: ‘This is a world heritage site, not your toilet.’
A visitor was caught on camera defacing the historic site with a key last March, on the first day the Great Wall opened up for tourists after being closed for two months during the height of the pandemic