China Scene: East

Western finery has little bearing on job offers

In a bid to impress potential employers, some college students in Qingdao, Shandong province, are spending loads of money on flashy Western suits and expensive leather shoes.

Zhang, a senior, got 1,000 yuan (about $140) from his parents to buy new clothes. After buying a Western suit and shirt, however, he could not afford to buy leather shoes and a tie clip, so he had to posted a letter on the Internet asking people to rent their leather shoes and tie clips to him.

Upon hearing about Zhang's story, a human resources official in charge of personnel at the bank where Zhang was applying to work said companies would consider applicants according to their ability, rather than appearance.

(www.qingdaonew.com)

Philanderer's victim threatens to release tape

Half a year ago, Chen, a 26-year-old woman in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, met a middle-aged man who told her he was single. They got a place together, but she soon found out the man was married and had a 10-year-old son.

She asked for compensation, but the man refused to pay, so Chen invited him to a hotel and recorded the two of them having sex. Then she took the video to the police station to show how the man had cheated her and asked for help getting compensation. She told them that if she could not get some money from the philanderer, she would release the video on the Internet.

Police said that because she was a victim and had not publicized the video yet, they would help her get 10,000 yuan ($1,400). They also asked her to delete any evidence of the tryst.

(Nanjing Morning Post)

(China Daily 04/30/2008 page6)