appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Fran Lu

A Chinese student’s complaint about the lack of benches in a university smoking area has been strongly rejected by a teacher, reigniting discussions on smoking publicly in China.
The student at the Xian International Studies University, in northwestern Shaanxi province, made the complaint in the school’s internal feedback channel.
The complainant said the lack of benches made smoking too “exhausting” and asked the school to provide more.
A university teacher responded with a lengthy letter saying that making smokers feel tired was exactly why the area was designed in the way it was.

“The smoking area is not a resting area. We set them up to provide a transition space for those who temporarily cannot quit smoking, to smoke away from the crowd and reduce the influence of second-hand smoke on other people,” the letter said.
It further slams the student’s request by saying: “When you complain about feeling ‘tired’ smoking while standing, have you thought of how tired other people are withstanding your second-hand smoke?”
“What really makes you tired is not the lack of benches, but your dependence on cigarettes. If you feel tired, then smoke less. If you want comfort, you can go to the library, classroom or the playground.”
At the end of the letter, the teacher also offered help to those who want to quit smoking.
The teacher’s reply won widespread applause on mainland social media.
“This is a perfectly written letter, logical, comprehensive, thoughtful. I hope more students can realise the harm of smoking,” said one online observer.

“This is what true education is like,” said another.
“What really shocked me is there are smoking areas in universities. I thought smoking is banned everywhere there,” said a third.
Another disagreed: “If there is no smoking area, then everywhere will be smoking area.”
China does not have a national anti-smoking law and smoking control work relies mostly on city-specific or partially national regulations.
After Shanghai first released anti-smoking regulations in 2010, other Chinese provinces followed suit, gradually prohibiting smoking in indoor public spaces.
Universities are one of the institutions that reacted most actively to the regulations.
In the 2010s, many universities tightened controls on smoking on campus, issuing bans on smoking across the campus, banning school shops from selling cigarettes and setting up smoking areas away from the student living quarters.
Some, such as the Peking University, also linked smoking to teachers and student appraisals.
The Xian International Studies University’s response chimed with the increasingly radical opposition to smoking publicly on social media.
Many people complain about suffering from second-hand smoke in public areas such as train platforms and call for stricter bans.
Some also used artificial intelligence (AI) to generate images of smokers wearing an astronaut helmet while smoking, sarcastically suggesting that the smoking area should be fully enclosed for the benefit of non-smokers.
Meanwhile, conflicts between non-smokers and smokers are constantly in the news in China.

In one famous case, Chinese actress Xu Jiao, who starred in the 2008 Stephen Chow Sing-chi film CJ7, tried to stop a man from smoking in an indoor restaurant in Changsha in the central province of Hunan and was attacked by the man, who threw his cigarette butt in her bowl.
Xu called the police who said they could not help because Changsha did not ban indoor smoking.
However, Xu received widespread support after exposing the matter online, and pushed the restaurant to post a no-smoking sign.
According to the 2024 China Adult Tobacco Survey carried out by the National Health Commission, the smoking rate among people aged 15 and above is 23.2 per cent, a decrease of 0.9 from 2022.
The smoking rate among men was 43.9 per cent, and 1.8 per cent among women.


Ancient Chinese texts depict ‘immortal mirror’ akin to CT scan – an early notion of robots

American donated US$5,000 to China farmer for tree planting decades ago invited to view forest

Every dog has its day: stray puppy steals the show at Chinese university sports event

China ‘most devoted fraudster’ fakes records to give wife free dialysis; reignites medical debate

Trending in China

China teacher slams student’s complaint about lack of benches in smoking area, reignites debate

A university student in China complained about the lack of benches in the smoking area, reigniting heated debates about public smoking. Photo: Shutterstock

Two female students enjoy a cigarette in a campus smoking area. Photo: Handout

A young person puffs on a cigarette on the street in Shanghai. Photo: Shutterstock

A no smoking sign attached to a lamp post in China. Photo: Shutterstock

Ancient China laws punished men for crying; people with messy handwriting forced to drink ink

Ancient China had odd laws; for example, crying without reason could cost a man his hair and messy handwriting could lead to ink-drinking punishment. Photo: Wikipedia

A scholar writes with an ink dish beside him, above. In ancient times people with messy handwriting could be forced to drink ink. Photo: QQ.com

The above painting shows a person with their hands forced above their head. In some punishments, the hands would be cut off. Photo: Getty Images

A modern day woman with a facial tattoo. At one point in history face inking was a form of punishment. Photo: Sohu/Zhihu

The painting above depicts a man being beaten with sticks as a punishment. Photo: Getty Images

This image shows prisoners in ancient times wearing a device used for corporal punishment and humiliation. Photo: Getty Images

The painting above shows a man being brutally restrained and having his face tattooed as a punishment. Photo: Baidu

Chinese man, 78, lives in supermarket despite owning flat, offers property to new friend for care

A 78-year-old man in Shanghai has lived in a supermarket for 10 years after inheriting a small flat because he fears loneliness post-divorce and found companionship with a woman at the shop. Photo: Shutterstock

Qiangming pictured standing alone next to some rubbish bins. Photo: QQ.com

Qiangming, left, photographed with the nanny he met while living in the supermarket. Photo: QQ.com

The entrance to the Shanghai flat which Qiangming refuses to live in. Photo: QQ.com

‘Occupational bug’: China surgeon goes viral for weighing 150kg due to work stress, bad diet

A Shanghai doctor has gone viral for weighing 150kg due to work stress and an unhealthy diet. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Douyin

Xiang Ruilong, above, says he has tried to lose weight but keeps putting it back on. Photo: Baidu

A close-up photograph of Xiang’s hands, above, shows just how big he is. Photo: Baidu

Xiang chats to a fellow medical professional at his workplace. Photo: Baidu

Xiang, far-right, has a hearty laugh as he is photographed with his colleagues. Photo: Baidu

Woman, 76, became China’s oldest mum giving birth to twins at 60 after enduring family tragedies

A 60-year-old Chinese woman who is now 76, became the country’s oldest mother after giving birth to twins following the loss of her daughter and son-in-law to carbon monoxide poisoning. Photo: SCMP composite/Weibo

Sheng Hailin, above, pictured when she was pregnant with twins at the age of 60. Photo: Douyin

A family photograph of Sheng with the twins and their father. Photo: Douyin

Sprightly Sheng enjoys a dance at home with her twin daughters. Photo: Douyin

Sheng pictured with her daughters in 2012, top, and 12 years later, bottom. Photo: Douyin

French bulldog in China known for collecting plastic bottles faces threats from animal abusers

A famous French bulldog in China known for collecting plastic bottles is facing threats from animal abusers. Photo: Douyin

French bulldog Xiaobai, above, doing what he does best, collecting used plastic bottles. Photo: Weibo

Xiaobai pictured with another used plastic bottle. He has made his owner a lot of money. Photo: Weibo

Xiaobai looking down in the dumps after he was confined to his home following the threats. Photo: Weibo

News

People & Culture

Educator pens stinging rebuke to ‘tired’ complaining cigarette lover, telling them if they want ‘comfort’ they should go to the library


Educator pens stinging rebuke to ‘tired’ complaining cigarette lover, telling them if they want ‘comfort’ they should go to the library.


Smoking and vaping

Peking University

China teacher slams student’s complaint about lack of benches in smoking area, reignites debate

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Educator pens stinging rebuke to ‘tired’ complaining cigarette lover, telling them if they want ‘comfort’ they should go to the library

Educator pens stinging rebuke to ‘tired’ complaining cigarette lover, telling them if they want ‘comfort’ they should go to the library