“Not Playing Along!” — Baoding, Hebei Merchants Avoid Illegal Fines This Way

Nearly all merchants in Baoding City, Hebei Province chose to close their shops to avoid illegal fines. (Video screenshot)

[People News] When facing CCP tyranny, there are many ways to protect oneself. Using peaceful means to avoid the violent machinery—and refusing to play along with the CCP’s violent tools—is also a good approach. It is reported that as year’s end approaches, certain departments in Baoding City, Hebei Province, are short of funds and want to amass money through fines. Smart merchants, however, are using a market shutdown to avoid the authorities’ unreasonable penalties.

Recently, netizens in Baoding, Hebei Province posted videos saying that due to inspections by the Market Supervision Administration, all shops except pharmacies and barber shops collectively closed their doors.

According to a post by the X-platform user “Sound of Hope – China Affairs,” Baoding merchants are fierce! They collectively shut down and went on strike to protest the government’s harsh inspections. On December 25, the Baoding government announced that it would carry out concentrated market inspections over the next two days, strictly checking for counterfeit goods, “three-no” products, and operations beyond approved scopes. In order to avoid fines, merchants across the city chose to collectively suspend business and go on strike. The post also included a video showing commercial streets lined on both sides with shops—convenience stores, restaurants, and even vegetable markets—all closed in a collective strike. Not a single pedestrian could be seen on the streets, and there were few cars driving by. The entire city of Baoding looked like an empty city.

While filming the video, the blogger sighed and said, “Sigh, business was already hard to do, and now everything is closed. Let’s rest—these days are just too hard.” As the blogger drove through Baoding, many shops along the roadsides were also tightly shut. Only occasionally could a few scattered residents be seen standing alone by the street. The blogger said, “There’s no one on the streets, and no one in the shops—I always feel like I’m operating in a no-man’s land.” “Everything is closed—there’s not even anywhere to eat lunch.”

Some merchants said: business was already difficult, and now it’s even more impossible to carry on! Some members of the public joked: “The devils are coming into the village!”

A Weibo big-V in Baoding, “Baoding Words Between the Lines,” posted on the 25th: “Starting yesterday, many shops in Baoding closed, and today there are even more. Closed shops include convenience stores, hardware stores, restaurants, barber shops, and even foot-massage parlors and phone screen-protector shops. Even more outrageous is that some large vegetable markets have also closed, making it a problem for people to buy groceries.” “As for the reasons for closing, there are all kinds of explanations. Some say it’s because of higher-level inspections. But regardless of the reason, so many shops closing is very abnormal and easily makes people question Baoding’s business environment.”

A netizen with an IP address in Hebei, “YMDXS Dingding,” wrote in a post: “A large number of merchants in Baoding closed because of inspections. Many shops in the city and counties have closed—qualified or not, all closed. If you ask why? The answer is the question of who ultimately decides whether something is qualified or not.”

Video blogger and Weibo big-V “For the Sake of Bookish Fragrance” said: “I don’t know whether the rumors are true. The relevant departments in Baoding need to speak out in time; otherwise, it will be troublesome if panic spreads. If it really is a surprise inspection, we need to see whether it’s about actual violations or about collecting fines. If year-end funding is tight for the relevant departments and they want to temporarily solve it through fines, that’s essentially killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. The logic is simple: if shops are fined to the point that they don’t dare to open, what happens to tax revenue afterward?”

Financial blogger “70,000 Hours, 17-Year Trader 2” said: “Stand up for Baoding merchants—don’t let it become the more depressed it is, the richer it gets (the more confiscation and fine revenue there is).”

Some netizens said: “The government is also aggrieved—they haven’t been able to pay wages for months. If they aren’t strict, they’ll only be drinking the northwest wind,” “Shenyang previously also had collective shop closures—this isn’t rare in China anymore,” “The government stirs things up on one hand while shouting about revitalizing the economy on the other.”

Other netizens mocked Xi Jinping, saying: “The truth is: the lords wave the banner of cracking down on fakes to inspect merchants and take the opportunity to skim money. Merchants with fakes don’t want to be skimmed and proactively close to avoid it; merchants without fakes know the lords will definitely call a deer a horse, so they also have no choice but to close and avoid it.”

Netizens commented: “Hebei—dark under the lamp, dark beyond belief,” “With fines like this, who would dare open even if they’re compliant? Brick-and-mortar stores are already getting harder and harder. After a year, everything goes to rent. One fine could wipe out years of work—better to close for peace of mind,” “Short of money?” “It’s year-end—civil servants need to pay out year-end bonuses,” “It’s year-end—the targets still haven’t been completed, right?”

On February 26, a reporter from Qilu Evening News’ Qilu Yidian called staff at the Market Supervision Administration of Lianchi District, Baoding City, who said that inspections did indeed exist, but there was no mandatory requirement to close shops. The reporter then contacted the News Section of the Baoding Municipal Party Committee’s Publicity Department; staff there said, “Wait for the official announcement,” and then hung up the phone. △