Rewards for returning lost property in Guangzhou

Guangzhou (CNS)-- The government of Guangzhou is determined to encourage its citizens to do the right thing: return lost property. It has given the finders of lost property the right to request a reward of 10 percent of the value of the lost property before surrendering the item back to the owner.

However, the owner still makes the decision to do so or not, and the government's move has raised the question of whether or not it is a good thing to reward people who take the trouble to return items.

A public consultation was completed by February 20 and revealed a spread of opinions. According to a website-based survey, 60 percent of the interviewees agreed with the rewarding mechanism, while 20 percent were against it.

The nay-sayers are concerned the reward would taint the nobility and good will of the action and degrade the moral character of public, but most regard a reward as a token of appreciation that encourages more people to exercise good behavior.

Legal experts have concerns about the feasibility of the law and advise a detailed implementation plan, but at least one lawyer asserted it supports the implementation of the Law of the Right to Property and is in line with the progress of modern civilization.

Meanwhile the Guangzhou police are emphasizing the ground rules stipulate a reward is given of the owner's free will.