Bare-bottomed at the Great Wall? China's angry

The events occurred at the beginning of 2025. On 3 January to be exact, the Japanese embassy in China confirmed the detention of two Japanese nationals, a woman and a man, by local authorities at the Great Wall. 

The Japanese tourists were detained in China for two weeks before being expelled from the country: they had photographed their exposed posteriors at the famous site. Caught in the act by security agents, they couldn't escape Chinese law.

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated last Friday that “the Japanese embassy in China confirmed on 3 January that two Japanese nationals had been detained by local authorities at the Great Wall”. The two tourists “were subsequently released and returned to Japan in January”. 

A Wave of Outrage

It should be noted that it's forbidden in China to expose the lower part of one’s body in a public place, according to 20 Minutes. In their defence, the Japanese nationals argued that it was just a joke… A very tasteless joke for many Japanese internet users who, on the social media network X (formerly Twitter), labelled this behaviour as “embarrassing” and a “national disgrace”. 

And it's not just that, as this "joke" also led to a wave of indignation in China, with the creation of a hashtag viewed more than 60 million times on the Weibo network. In the comments, users harshly criticised the tourist couple, sometimes using insults referencing atrocities committed during the Sino-Japanese war or suggesting banning the Japanese from visiting the Great Wall, according to 20 Minutes. 

(MH with Raphaël Liset - Source: 20 Minutes - Illustration: ©Unsplash)