Despite airport rage, majority respects rules when abroad

A video featuring a group of Chinese passengers shouting “China!” in an airport went viral online Tuesday. According to the uploader, Chinese passengers stranded at a Tehran airport by heavy snowfall were trying to force the airport to reopen flights.

But later a passenger told Chinese mainland media that they were shouting “China” to express their gratitude to the Chinese embassy for the help they had received.

China has done well protecting and assisting Chinese overseas these years. But publicly shouting “China!” in foreign countries can cause misunderstanding.

Stories about Chinese passengers clashing with airport staff at overseas airports are not new. Chinese passengers are often depicted by foreign media as a rude, largely lawless group making unreasonable demands. However, this time, the Chinese passengers at Tehran airport protected their rights rationally with the help of the embassy.

Noticeably, when it was falsely believed the passengers were vehemently demanding the airport reopen flights despite unfavorable weather conditions, their alleged embarrassing misbehavior drew broad criticism from Chinese society. This shows the majority of Chinese respect rules and don’t support such wild and willful behavior.

As an old saying goes, “nothing can be accomplished without norms and standards.” Chinese society has a tradition of acting according to the rules. With reform and opening up, especially after China’s accession to the World Trade Organization, more and more people have realized the importance of adhering to the rules when dealing with foreigners.

Last month, Marriott International was ordered to shut down its six Chinese websites and apps for listing Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet and Macao as stand-alone countries in an email questionnaire. Just as Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive said at the World Internet Conference last year, “When you go into a country and participate in the market, you are subject to the laws and regulation of that country.”

With more and more Chinese going abroad, it’s of vital importance that they maintain rationality and act in line with rules and laws. This is not only related to better safeguarding their rights overseas, but also closely related to the image of China.