The most controversial symbol of globalization in Beijing has closed its door.

The Starbucks outlet in the Forbidden City downed its shutters on Friday after months of online protests by millions of people, saying its presence undermined the solemnity of the former imperial palace and trampled over Chinese culture.

The move follows the Forbidden City management's decision to allow shops to operate only under its brand name.

The Forbidden City was the seat of 24 emperors before the end of imperial rule in 1911. It is China's top tourist attraction, drawing about 7 million visitors a year.

Vice-president of the palace management board Li Wenru said Starbucks was offered the option of operating under the Palace Museum brand name like the other outlets. 

But Starbucks' Vice-President for Greater China Eden Woon didn't agree to that. Beijing Youth Daily quoted him as saying: "It is not our custom to have stores that have any other name, therefore we decided the choice would be to leave."

The outlet was opened in 2000, and the rent it paid was used for maintenance work. But this January, China Central Television (CCTV) anchorman Rui Chenggang initiated an online protest saying the coffee shop was ruining Chinese culture. Millions of people supported him.

Starbucks, however, denied any link between the protest and the closure. "It (the closure) is just out of respect for the palace's decision," Starbucks spokesman Sun Kejiang said.

Seattle-based Starbucks Corp has 250 outlets on the mainland, making the country one of its major growth markets.

The Forbidden City management's move is aimed at streamlining commercial activities and recreating the palace ambience, Li said. All shops operating in the palace will have to follow the norms.

Several domestic coffee brands will start operating under the palace's brand later this month, he said.

The reaction to Starbucks' closure from sociologists and the public has been mixed. "It may have been just a business choice for Starbucks," said Wang Xiongjun, a sociology scholar from Peking University. "But the important thing is for the palace management board to figure out an effective way to preserve the palace ambience."

Some people, however, felt differently. Beijing resident Liu Yu said: "Coca-cola and Kodak films, too, are sold at the palace. It's impossible and irrational to sweep all of them out. They reflect cultural pluralism."

(China Daily July 16, 2007)