The parking spaces outside a Chinese shopping mall are distinctive: marked out in pink, sign-posted “Respectfully reserved for women,” and around 30 cm wider than normal.
The slots at the Dashijiedaduhui — or “World Metropolis” — center have sparked debate in China, which officially embraces gender equality but where, in reality, old-fashioned sexism is rife.
The mall, in the center of the northern port city of Dalian, has little to distinguish itself from the thousands of other retail complexes that have sprung up across the country as part of a vast urbanization drive.
It boasts chain clothing stores, fast food franchises, glass lifts, a cinema and the inevitable Starbucks, a favorite hangout of China’s new middle class.
Unusually, though, the 10 spaces outside the main entrance were provided after women had trouble parking in the standard basement slots, managers said.
“I think this is very convenient,” said user Yong Mei. “Other parking spaces are too narrow.”
“It’s not gender-biased,” she said. “It’s just that women have a few issues with vision when parking.”
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Or is it "Dirty sluts?"
