That round-eared mouse dancing with kids? Not a copy of Disney's Mickey Mouse, the Shijingshan Amusement Park insists. And that raven-haired woman with seven men in elf suits? Not Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
In a country awash in pirated music, movies and other goods, the state-owned Shijingshan park stands out.
"We do not have any agreements with Disney," its deputy general manager, Yin Zhiqiang, said on Wednesday. "The characters in our park just look a little bit similar to theirs. But the faces, clothes, sizes and appearances are different."
PHOTO: AP
Such rampant Chinese copying has strained ties with the US, whose trade deficit with China soared to US$232.5 billion last year. Both governments are preparing for what are expected to be contentious talks from May 23 to May 24 in Washington on Beijing's trade policies, its currency and other issues.
On Wednesday, a Chinese delegation signed deals at a ceremony in San Francisco to buy US$4.3 billion in US technology in an apparent effort to ease US anger. The contracts went mostly to software, semiconductor and telecoms companies including Microsoft Corp, Oracle Corp, Cisco Systems Inc and Hewlett-Packard Co.
China regularly makes such purchases of US jetliners, soybeans and other goods before high-level contacts.
But it was unclear what effect the latest buying spree might have on the souring US mood.
Facing rising criticism from Congress, the administration of US President George W. Bush has threatened trade penalties over product piracy. Washington last month filed a WTO complaint against Beijing.
Over the weeklong May Day holiday, the Shijingshan Amusement Park filled its grounds on Beijing's western suburbs with actors in costumes resembling Disney characters and other foreign characters.
A video shot by Japan's Fuji TV on Tuesday last week showed children cavorting with Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Pluto, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Japan's Hello Kitty and Doraemon.
A banner over the entrance said, "Disney is too far, so please come to Shijingshan."
On Wednesday, the banner was down and none of the cartoon characters were on display. An employee who would give only her surname, Li, said the performances usually take place during the summer and holidays.
Lawyers for the park and the Walt Disney Co were in negotiations, said Yin, the deputy general manager of the park, which is owned by the government of Beijing's Shijingshan District.
"The results will come out in a couple of days," he said.
A Disney spokeswoman, Alannah Goss, declined to comment on the Shijingshan park but sent a statement affirming Disney's determination to fight copying.
"Disney values and protects its intellectual property vigorously and takes reports of suspected infringement very seriously," the statement said.
Despite the striking similarities to foreign characters, Yin insisted that the Beijing park's characters were all locally designed.
"Take our Cinderella as an example. The face of Disney's Cinderella face is European, but ours is a Chinese. She looks like a young Chinese country girl," Yin explained.
At the center of the park is a building labeled "Cinderella's Castle" on park maps.
It bears a striking resemblance to the original at Disneyland in California.
In a mixup of cartoon images, the castle ticket booth is built to look like Snow White, while a nearby statue of a woman with seven dwarves is Sleeping Beauty.
On Wednesday, two workmen with sledgehammers could be seen tearing down the statue. The park refused to say why.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from