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Firecracker Ban May Go up in Smoke

Beijing is expected to end its 12-year ban on the use of firecrackers during the Spring Festival in a response to public demand.

On June 2, municipal officials announced that residents will be permitted to use fireworks during the next holiday season, from the Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve until the Lantern Festival (the 15th day of the first month of the Chinese New Year), in all districts of the city.

Zhou Jidong, director of the Legislative Affairs Office under the Beijing Municipal Government, said: "We are changing the policy to meet strong requests from the public."

During this year's Lunar New Year, no one was allowed to light firecrackers within the Fifth Ring Road because of concerns about safety and the environment.

Zhou said firecrackers will still be banned at transportation hubs, government locations, military organizations, around historical relics or sites and other places that might easily catch fire or explode.

The Legislative Affairs Office has finished the draft of the Beijing municipal regulation on firecracker safety supervision, to replace the current ban.

A detailed schedule has not been fixed, Zhou told China Daily, but he said he hoped the new regulation would become effective before the next Spring Festival, which falls on January 29, 2006.

Zhou said: "Although the ban will be removed, it does not mean that the government is encouraging the use of firecrackers in the city."