A Chinese man visiting relatives in Taiwan was fined NT$6,000 (US$196) for contravening the Waste Disposal Act (廢物清理法) after using a marker pen to scribble on walls so that he would be able to find his way back home, local media reported yesterday.
According to the police, Wu Daotian (吳道天), aged 61, from Fujian Province was visiting his sister who is married to a Taiwanese. Staying at his sister’s home on Xiyuan Road in Taipei City, Wu visited the Ximending (西門町) area on the evening of Sept. 27, which is about 2km from his sister’s residence.
Afraid he would get lost, Wu bought several magic markers which he then used to make marks on walls and posts along the route, the Chinese-language Apple Daily reported yesterday, adding that the markings were visible along Guiyang Road Sec 2 and at the intersection of Xichang Road.
“I didn’t know it was against the law,” The Apple Daily quoted Wu as saying.
According to the police, Wu continued to make the marks until he reached the Wanhua police station on Changsha Road Sec 2. Not knowing what the building was he proceeded to scribble on the wall and was detained for questioning by precinct chief Chan Te-yang (詹德陽).
The Apple Daily quoted Wu as saying that he was not familiar with Taipei and only wanted to go to Ximending to see first-hand the prosperity of the city, adding that he made marks along his way because he was afraid of getting lost.
The police decided that Wu had broken the law and called the Bureau of Environmental Protection, which determined that the marks constituted polluting the environment and fined Wu NT$6,000, the report said.
Upon learning that the still-visible markings were made by a Chinese tourist worried about getting lost, one member of the public was quoted by the Apple Daily as saying: “That’s pretty funny, he could’ve just asked.”
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