This Day, That Year

Item from Dec 11, 1984, in China Daily: Contestants enjoy a waltz as they try to stage their best performance to win a dance contest. ... Such affairs have not been officially encouraged for the last several years.

As many visitors to China have seen, numerous elderly residents in cities across the country regularly gather at public squares in the evening to dance.

In March, the General Administration of Sport's Mass Fitness Department issued a list of standards and regulations for the popular guang chang wu (public square dancing) pastime, which has been criticized for its loud music and other forms of disruption.