Courage alone not enough in some situations

CITIZENS INTERVENING TO ASSIST OTHERS regardless of their own safety will no longer be encouraged in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, according to the city's revised regulations on rewarding and protecting the good Samaritans, which are expected to take effect from next year. A recent commentary on the local Changjiang Daily says that such revision is in line with the spirit of scientific legislation.

Wuhan's new "good Samaritan" law that promotes strategic, instead of bold, reactions to situations such as street crime, is an example of well-thought out legislation. Of course, both the governments and society should value those who assist victims of injury or crime and demonstrate their gallantry.

But many local good Samaritan laws refer to such acts as "residents standing up against misdeeds without considering their own safety", not defusing the crisis by strategy. This parochial interpretation might easily give rise to a series of problems.