Chinese city shames people for wearing pyjamas; apologies

Chinese city officials, who shamed people for wearing pyjamas in public, have apologized after a public outcry. Suzhou city officials in Anhui province had released pictures of seven people wearing their nightwear, calling it an "uncivilized behavior" as part of the public campaign.

After the publication of the pictures, several people accused the government of infringing upon people's privacy by imposing a dress code. The online "shaming" included the pyjama picture - caught by surveillance cameras - plus the person's name, ID card and other information, BBC reported on Monday.

China has seen a huge growth in surveillance technology in recent years, investing billions of dollars in the research of Artificial Intelligence (AI), especially in the facial recognition technology which is being deployed at public places as part of security measures. Two years ago, the country had 170 million CCTV cameras, with another 400 million expected by the end of 2020. Many are linked to artificial intelligence - allowing them to recognize exactly who they are filming, the report said.

The pictures in Suzhou were published on Monday by the city's management bureau. Officials argued they were entering a national "civilized city" competition, and that residents were banned from wearing pyjamas in public.

Other "bad behavior" exposed online included "laying (on a bench) in an uncivilized manner", and handing out advertising flyers. But the pyjama pictures caused anger online. Some argued that there was nothing wrong with wearing pyjamas in public while others said the government had infringed upon residents' privacy, the report said.

Officials later "sincerely apologized", adding: "We wanted to put an end to uncivilized behavior, but of course we should protect residents' privacy." The officials said they would, in the future, blur the pictures instead.

A tourist city with ancient water systems, Suzhou's proactive approach is not new. Last year, according to local media, the city asked residents to submit pictures of "uncivilized behavior", offering to pay 10 yuan (USD 1.45) for successful tip-offs.