Chinese tourists have earned themselves a reputation for not behaving properly, both domestically and internationally, with the latest incident being three Chinese nationals arrested in Japan during the past Tomb-sweeping holiday for alleged sexual harassment.

The issue has captured massive attention from both the public and government organs, inciting fierce criticism and debate.

The country's National Tourism Bureau has published a regulation to document tourists' uncivilized behaviour on a trial basis, which went into effect on April 6.

According to the rules, provincial authorities will document indecent behaviour within their administrative jurisdiction through reports by lower level authorities or media reports, while the tourism authorities under the State Council, China's cabinet, will gather the information to form a national database.

The documented information will be kept for one to two years, starting from the day the misbehaviour is verified.

What behaviour is deemed 'inappropriate'?

The newly-published regulation has given certain examples of 'inappropriate' or 'indecent' behaviour.

[1] Interfering with the operation or safety of public vehicles, such as buses, trains, ships and aeroplanes.

[2] Damaging the environment or public facilities.

[3] Violating local customs or disrupting the lifestyles of those living in the vacation destination.

[4] Ruining historical relics.

Once a tourist's behaviour falls into one of the categories mentioned above, he/she will be reprimanded in accordance with the impact, ranging from administrative penalties to court sentences.

Tourism authorities should also inform the person involved about repaying for the indecent behaviour, and report to the police, customs, immigration checks, and credit evaluation organisations if necessary, according to the regulation.

The photo shows a stewardess covering her face with her hands after a female passenger reportedly poured hot water over her during a flight from Bangkok to Nanjing on December 11, 2014. [Photo: zaobao.com]

Is the new regulation going to work?

The regulation is the latest strive by Chinese authorities to urge their countrymen to better behave themselves.

However, doubts are looming over the feasibility of the measures.

During an interview with the China Daily newspaper, Zhang Hui, who works for a multinational company in Shanghai, expressed her concerns. "I'm not sure whether this new measure will work, just like no-smoking signs in public areas [in China]. And I'm still not clear how the behavior of Chinese tourists will be supervised worldwide."

Zhang Hui's idea is backed by Zhang Lingyun, deputy dean of the tourism college at Beijing Union University. Zhang Lingyun contended that obtaining evidence would prove to be difficult. "Behaviour that breaches the law won't be too difficult to define, but cases that involve morals will be," said Zhang Lingyun.

He added that cases involving moral standards of a given location can only be settled through education and with proper guidance.

Are Chinese tourists really that bad?

China's vice premiere Wang Yang once said, some Chinese tourists' uncivilised bahaviour "damages the image of the Chinese people and has a very bad impact."

It seems the reason why people care about the reports on Chinese tourists' bad behaviour is that a greater community is humiliated by a small fraction of the 'uncivilised.'

But are Chinese tourists really that bad?

Adam Taylor, a reporter with the Washington Post, wrote in an article that studies and polls have named Americans, Britons and French as the "world's worst tourists" in the past few years.

Chinese are not among the worst, at least.

Also, indecent behaviour, such as soaking one's feet in the fountain in front of the Louvre in Paris, France, is not exclusively committed by Chinese nationals.

Chinese are traveling abroad in greater numbers; however, for most of the public, it still remains a luxury. Most Chinese are unable to speak English. Many are on their first trip abroad. Inexperience or timidity also results in confrontational situations.

The exotic environment and cultural differences also play a big role in the issue.