Peking University, widely reputed to be one of China's most
prestigious educational institutions, attracts more than its fair
share of gawkers.
It is common to see busloads of parents and grandparents showing
children, even toddlers, around the campus perhaps hoping that they
would one day be lucky enough to enroll in the elite
university.
But the university has had enough of being a tourist attraction
it has banned all tour groups from the campus.
The exceptions are individual visitors and groups of high school
students organized by educational institutions as long as they
secure permission from the university's security department three
days in advance.
According to a notice posted on the university's website over
the weekend, the move is intended to maintain order on campus.
Predictably, the decision has generated heated debate. While
tourists feel aggrieved, students in the university applauded the
ban.
Peking University, along with Tsinghua University, another top
institution in the country, has become a must-see in tour packages,
especially for parents who want their children to excel.
Tsinghua University has not announced any ban on campus
tourism.
Many tourist agencies around the country provide such packages;
and the universities do not charge for the tours. Consequently,
Peking University's western gate and the street in front are always
crowded with photo-snapping tourists to the point of traffic
snarls. Inside the campus are vendors peddling T-shirts, drinks and
souvenirs to tourists.
"Going through the west gate once, I thought I had walked into a
farmers' market," a Peking University student posted on BBS.
Students also complained about the noise with some tourists
talking loudly near classrooms.
"Peking University should not become a tourist destination,"
said Tang Jun, a researcher with the Sociology Institute under the
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Universities should be open to the public, but they can refuse
groups organized by tour agencies, Beijing Morning Post quoted Tang
as saying.
However, many tourists are dismayed.
"How could Peking University do this? Isn't the university built
by the country and with taxpayers' money? I think it is also very
meaningful for primary school students to visit the campus," said a
man surnamed Cui from southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Gu Haibing, a professor at Renmin University of China, also
opposed the ban.
"Peking University is the university of all Chinese people It
might want to close its campus to tour groups because it does not
want to pay for the security," he was quoted as saying by
Beijing Morning Post.
(China Daily July 25, 2006)