Henan in public video ban

Authorities in Central China's Henan Province passed a new law on Thursday that bans individuals from acquiring surveillance video collected in public places. The move triggered a heated debate, as many questioned whether the law will be used to protect corrupt officials after video footage in a Shanghai nightclub revealed four court officials soliciting prostitutes.

The law, which will take effect on October 1, forbids any trading or distributing of surveillance video on the Internet. It also bans installation of surveillance cameras in places that could infringe upon people's privacy, such as hotel rooms and restrooms.

Those who fail to abide by the rules will be fined up to 30,000 yuan ($4,899) but the law did not specify whether they will face charges.

The new law strikes many Net users as a cover-up policy for corrupt government officials, while local authorities argued that the law was aimed at protecting citizens' privacy and preventing crimes.

"Citizens can still get hold of the surveillance video if they are granted permission by the police. The policy does not stop people from reporting corruption, it just says people should do so through legal channels," said an anonymous source from the Standing Committee of the Henan Provincial People's Congress, adding that it was only a coincidence that the new regulation came a day before the prostitution scandal.

"We are not the only province with such regulation on surveillance videos," the official noted.

Sichuan and Hunan provinces have also launched similar rules.

Four Shanghai court officials were suspended from their posts on Sunday as part of an investigation into their alleged solicitation of prostitutes at a nightclub. The whistle-blower was said to have reproduced the surveillance video with his cell phone and later posted it on the Internet in an effort to wage a personal vendetta against one of the officials, the Beijing Times reported.

"The regulation may have good intentions but, as civil servants, officials have given up part of their privacy when they took office in the first place," Ma Dongjun, a lawyer from Guizhou Chongshi Law Firm, told the Global Times.

Zhou Xiaoyun, a famous online whistle-blower who has revealed a number of scandals, agreed.

"Under the law in Henan, it will be difficult for citizens to acquire permission from the police, especially with cases related to officials," Zhou told the Global Times. "However it will be a bigger threat to social security if people can just acquire surveillance videos without any approval. That's a big breach of the law and a threat to everyone in society."