Donning your vampire blood or Batman costume on the subway today in Beijing in the spirit of Halloween could get you arrested.
"In order to avoid mass panic, Beijing subway passengers will be prohibited from wearing fancy dress or wearing face makeup on the train," according to state-run Beijing News, adding that costumed riders could "easily cause a crowd to gather and create trouble."
The Chinese government discourages superstitions including "Western Halloween," reports Reuters. The holiday is not widely celebrated in the country, although Western festival holidays such as Christmas are becoming increasingly celebrated (without religious connotations).
Beijing is ramping up its security measures in the city from Saturday through Nov. 12 - apparently starting with Halloween.
The rules against costumes on the subway are to prevent "panic," as Beijing News reported.
"Public transport police point out, please do not wear strange outfits in subway stations or in train carriages, which could easily cause a crowd to gather and create trouble. If the chaos is serious and causes a stampede or other public safety incident, the police will deal with it severely in accordance with the law."
