Chinese citizens are at it again: they’ve taken expressing their anger over the unfavorable decision at an international tribunal over territorial maritime disputes in the South China Sea to a new bizarre level. Last week it was smashing iPhones. This week it’s anti-US protests at KFC outlets.
Yes, you read that correctly. KFC. As in the Colonel Sanders’ finger-licking fried chicken joint. The American fast-food chain has over 4,000 branches in China and is “often seen as a symbol of US influence in the country,” BBC news reported.
In the past few days, small crowds of people have gathered outside KFCs in Hebei, Changsha, and Hangzhou, shouting anti-US slogans and holding up banners reading “Get out of China, KFC and McDonalds.”
Although the protests have yet to reach gargantuan proportion, the peculiar (and frankly absurd) nature of them have drawn criticism from Chinese state media.
“This is not the way to express patriotism,” said state-run Xinhua news.
The China Daily newspaper wrote: “Instead of being patriotic, it is their jingoism that does a disservice to the spirit of devotion to the nation.
“Those who organize such activities without going through the necessary procedures and unlawfully harass others in the name of patriotism should be held accountable according to the law.”
In China, protesting without obtaining permission from the government is against the law.
