Media Focus
Sanlian Lifeweek - October 21, 2011
Edible Bribes
As crab season approached in late Autumn, live crabs packed into gold-plated boxes and priced at around 100,000 yuan (US$15,740) became a must-have status symbol or, more commonly, bribe. A trend of giving extravagantly packaged food items as luxurious “gifts” to employers and officials has seen a resurgence in recent years, with expensive imported gifts such as vintage bottles of Chateau Lafite and Hermès bags jostling alongside homegrown luxuries like top-end organic tea. With the big gift-giving season prior to Chinese New Year now in full swing, a growing number of critics have begun to decry the distribution of such gifts in an attempt to curry favor with superiors, instead championing so-called “European” traditions of giving gifts out of generosity alone.
January 2012
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