China's Ministry of Culture has issued a notice banning entertainment venues from setting up in or around residential buildings and schools.

Entertainment venues are also not allowed in museums, libraries, cultural edifices, basements more than one floor underground and crowded public places like train stations or airports, it said.

"Entertainment businesses should not be near schools, hospitals and government departments," the notice says.

The notice is subordinate to the Regulation on the Administration of Entertainment Venues, which took effect on March1 and banned gambling, prostitution and other illegal activities on the premises.

It also states that distances between entertainment venues and dangerous chemical storehouses must respect the Regulation on the Safety Control of Dangerous Chemicals.

China's entertainment industry has grown into a huge money-spinner. Owners of entertainment venues, including karaoke clubs (KTV), snooker rooms, computer game parlors and bars often overlook legal and safety issues in their pursuit of profit.

 

(Source: 2006-11-26, Xinhua Net)

 

In a related report, China Daily reports on Nov. 27, 2006 as saying: 

 

A new rule bars new entertainment venues from opening near residential buildings and schools to avoid possible public disturbances, according to a notice by the Ministry of Culture.

The notice, issued on Friday as a supplement to the Regulation on the Administration of Entertainment Venues, which took effect on March 1, also makes it clear that such businesses are not allowed to operate in museums, libraries, cultural sites, two or more levels underground or in public places such as railway stations and airports.

Areas near schools, hospitals and government offices are also off limits to new entertainment venues, which the notice defines as KTVs, ballrooms, nightclubs and arcade game halls. Bars and Internet cafes are not included.

Zhang Xinjian, deputy director of the Culture Ministry's culture market department, said earlier this year that the ministry had received many noise complaints involving entertainment venues and would issue regulations to reduce such disturbances .

The notice posted on Friday leaves it up to local governments to set a specific minimum distance between entertainment venues and schools, hospitals and government offices.

However, the notice does say that distances between entertainment venues and storage depots for hazardous materials are subject to the Regulation on the Safety Control of Dangerous Chemicals, which says such storehouses must be away from crowded public places, though it also fails to set specific distances.

Should any disputes arise over the distances between such storehouses and entertainment venues, operators of entertainment venues will have to seek written approval to do business from local departments in charge of supervising hazardous materials.

In addition, local governments are required to hold public hearings on the opening of new entertainment venues. These are to bring together residents, schools, hospitals and government organizations that may be affected by entertainment venues.

The public seems to have responded enthusiastically to the new rules.

Almost all of the 65 comments left on sina.com, a leading news website, voiced support for the restrictions on new entertainment venues, though many of them also raised questions about venues that are already in or near residential buildings.

"In the residential compound I live in, we have KTVs, 24-hour restaurants and mah-jong rooms,"one anonymous netizen wrote. "Even in winter, with all the windows closed, we can hardly sleep well because of the noise."

Ministry figures show that China's entertainment industry has been developing rapidly in recent years. Beijing alone is currently home to about 2,030 entertainment venues.