A local industrial and commercial bureau in Yunnan Province has reversed its decision to force locals who buy surgical face masks register with their real names.
Locals in Anning, a city under the administration of Kunming, said they feared the original ruling was connected with the recent protests against a paraxylene (PX) plant slated to be built in the city.
The latest notice said the bureau decided to immediately revoke the previous circular on the real-name policy and apologized to the public.
Two pharmacies in Anning contacted by the Global Times confirmed that customers had been required to bring their ID cards to buy a mask, but now they don't have to. "Our masks were sold out before the weekend, and customers had to wait for two days before restocking," said a female employee from a branch of Baiyao Pharmacy.
A picture of the circular dated May 21 has gone viral online since Friday, in which all vendors were asked to record customers' names, ID numbers, amounts of masks, as well as the purchase date from May 21, 2013, adding that violators would be penalized.
The circular came days after thousands of locals had taken to the streets objecting to the potential pollution brought by the PX project, with some of them wearing masks.
Kunming mayor Li Wenrong reposted the latest notice on his Sina Weibo Sunday, but made no further comment.
"The local government's move keeps up with the time. Government needs to keep learning and making progress," said Cai Zhiyue, chief of Kunming's network information office, in his Weibo account.
However, not everyone gives high praise. "I do not accept the government's apology," said Liu Caiyun, a local resident, adding that it's a kind of oppression and a threat to prevent locals from protest by stopping the purchase of masks.
"The project will contribute to the economy, but will more or less affect the environment and people's health. Officials should strive to reduce the harm to the minimum," said Liu.
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