A man in Yulin published online a special effects video of him bombing a toll station which soon attracted the attention of Yulin police. Local police later detained him for 10 days and as well as fined him 500 yuan.
Netizens upon learning about this news were left perplexed with some asking questions like “What did he do wrong?”, “Will they detain film makers that use explosion special effects in movies as well?”
▲Screenshot from the video.
From the video that he posted online, it can be seen that he demonstrated the “magical fingers,” that by snapping his fingers a laser will be shot from his fingertips to the direction of the toll station and cause an explosion. He captioned the video with “Blowing up Tangan toll station.”
▲Screenshot from the video.
On October 29, Yulin PSB issued a notice addressing the video saying that Mr. Yang, while seeking excitement, created and published a video depicting him exploding Tangan toll station, this disturbed social order and caused adverse social consequences, his behavior also constituted provocation. He was punished according to the Article 26 of the law of the PRC on administrative penalties for public security.
BAFLA news reporters contacted the short video platform’s content regulators for clarification, the relevant staff said that they could not say for certain whether the video broke any rules or not.
A staff of Yulin PSB told BAFLA news reporter that from his personal perspective, the video had certain social impact and the punishment can be justified, he added that everyone’s views on this matter can be different. Upon further questioning, he asked our reporter to consult the local legal department of PSB.
Chen Liang, a lawyer from Hubei Hao Law law firm, told BAFLA news reporter that the punishment is based on Article 26 of the law of the PRC on public security administration punishment.
The regulations clearly stipulates that anyone who commits one of the following acts shall be detained for not less than 5 days but not more than 10 days and may also be fined not more than 500 yuan; If the circumstances are serious, he shall be detained for not less than 10 days but not more than 15 days and may also be fined not more than 1000 yuan:
-Gang fighting;
-Chasing or intercepting others;
-Forcibly seizing or arbitrarily damaging or occupying public or private property;
-Other provocative acts.
He said that since the first three do not qualify for this case, the fourth one should apply. Albeit, the fourth one is vague and does not specify any illegal activity, it is referred to in Chinese laws as a “Pocket clause” (口袋条款).
A cursory search on Baidu about this particular clause comes up with some interesting results, one of them links on an article on Baidu Know (Baidu Zhidao) which says:
“Pocket clause” is a legal term. It refers to a legal clause with vague meaning, highly generalized and no clear definition about illegal or criminal acts. It is also often referred to as the “Miscellaneous Provision”.
Stay clear of explosions ladies and gentlemen, be it real or simulation.
via 宝安外语协会
