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An English-only teaching town to be built in a suburb northeast of Beijing would ban Chinese and other foreign languages in an effort to attract anglophiles and students looking for an immersion experience, the Jinghua Times reported last Thursday.
"We plan to build in the European architectural style of the English city. The town will be divided into 16 city blocks, laid out like a castle," said Wang Haichen, head of Miyun County.
"It's like going abroad for tourists. When they arrive, they will get a 'passport' which has to be stamped. And those who are caught speaking Chinese will have their points on the passport deducted," Wang said.
According to Wang, the language rules were drawn up as a bid to distinguish the development from the other European-style towns across the country.
News of the town, which Wang said is expected to take five years to build, has been forwarded more than 10,000 times on Twitter-like microblogging platform Sina Weibo, where it has stirred fierce debate.
Some netizens expressed disgust for the plans. "We are now in an increasingly globalized world. But that doesn't mean we should forget who we are," one blogger wrote. "It's good to embrace globalization, but why should we forget our native language?" another blogger asked.
Others argued the language rule is a form of discrimination. "Does that mean people who can't speak English should stay away?" one blogger asked. Another blogger struck a more ironic tone: "Which 'genius' developed this idea? We can speak Chinese in English-speaking countries, but now we are forbidden at home."
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据《京华时报》报道，北京市东北部郊县密云县计划打造一座英语城，在城内只能使用英语沟通，不能使用汉语或其他外语。该项目意图吸引那些对英国文化感兴趣的游客和乐于体验浸入式英语环境的学生。
密云县县长王海臣说：“我们计划建一座欧洲建筑风格的英语城，整个城分为16个城市街区，是个封闭式的城堡。”
“开放后，游客进入英语城就像出国一样，弄一个‘护照’然后盖章。进城之后不许说汉语，说汉语会扣分。”
王海臣表示，这是为了和国内其他类似的欧洲风情小镇有所区别，避免同质化竞争。
王海臣预计该项目建成要花费五年的时间。此消息一出，在新浪微博上的转发超过了上万条，并引发了热烈的讨论。
一些网友对这个计划表示出反感。有人在博客中写道：“虽然现在提倡国际化，但是也不能忘本。”还有网友诘问：“走向国际化虽不错，但难不成还得忘却自身民族的语言吗？”
还有人认为，限制语言也是一种歧视。一位网友质疑道：“这是让不会说英语的人走开吗？”另一位网友讽刺道：“去英美国家都还能说汉语，在中国却不让说了，真有才啊，这点子谁想的？”
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