Nearly 23 tons of firecrackers were set off and destroyed
yesterday on empty land in Yantian District, Shenzhen, producing
deafening sounds and dense smoke.
Police destroyed the firecrackers in accordance with the
municipal government's decade-old ban on firecrackers. It is also
part of a citywide police campaign to ensure a safe
Spring Festival in Shenzhen.
The firecrackers, piled up in a 15-meter-long and six-meter-wide
area, were confiscated from more than 1,000 stores in Shenzhen in a
recent police operation.
Several dozen firecracker wholesale markets were closed down
during the operation, according to Shi Zhigang, deputy chief of the
Shenzhen public security bureau.
"Destruction of the fireworks shows the municipal government's
determination in carrying out the ban on firecrackers," said
Shi.
Shenzhen started banning the sale and setting off of fireworks
in 1993, when many other Chinese cities began doing away with this
traditional way of celebrating the Spring Festival.
At present, fireworks are banned throughout the city, except for
Window of the World and China Folk Culture Villages. The two theme
parks have obtained special approval from the Guangdong Provincial
Public Security Department.
According to the ban, no firecrackers are to be sold, stored,
transported or set off in Shenzhen. Any violation of the ban may
lead to a maximum fine of 5,000 yuan (US$625) and a maximum 15
days' police detention.
"We want to emphasize that people are not allowed to set off
firecrackers anywhere in the city, including areas outside the
Special Economic Zone (SEZ)," said a police spokesman.
Some lawmakers made a proposal to the city's legislature last
year trying to lift the ban in some areas of the city, but the
proposal failed to get approved.
(Shenzhen Daily January 24, 2006)