Among the many things one can do to make China “lose face” in the international eye:

1. Distribute toxic playthings to small children the world around

2. Kidnap and enslave hundreds of your countrymen and their children and force them to work in subhuman conditions

3. Crop the edges off a map

All three offensives have been committed in the last year, and all three were met with swift punishment. Granted, the map offenders have it a little easier than Zheng Xiaoyu (former director of the State Food and Drug Administration who will be executed for his role in the this year’s tainted export debacle).

Six hotel chains have been found in violation of map standards regulated by the Shanghai’s Mapping and Survey Management Office for failing to show the entirety of China — in all its island-speckled, Taiwan-including glory — on maps purporting to depict the nation. And by “purporting to depict the nation,” we mean anything that is not clearly labeled to explain what it lacks. The Shanghai Daily gives on example:

The Wuyi Road outlet of the discount chain Home Inn was found providing maps that only showed one-third of China, neglecting to show the vast western part of the country.

According to a receptionist at the hotel who declined to be identified, the maps simply show the part of China where Home Inn has hotels.

That is illegal, according to Zhu, because the map was designed in a way that suggests it is showing the whole country. If it was labeled properly to indicate it only showed eastern China, and it included Taiwan Province, it would be alright.

Publishers of incomplete maps can be fined up to 10,000 yuan (US $1,315). Does that mean Google is in trouble?

Shanghai Daily: Incomplete Maps Illegal

Picture via Enchanted Learning