No one likes the endless trailers and advertisements that precede the main feature at movie theatres these days. But some in the audience might have preferred more ads to the fare on offer at a recent screening of the latest Avenger movie. ABC News reports that Chinese authorities now shame debtors and defaulters who owe money to the state by projecting their names and faces on the screen at movie theatres.
This practice, which began in Sichuan province, seems to be expanding country-wide and is part of a suite of technological tools rolled out by the state to monitor and control its citizens. In the balance between individual rights and state interests, in China the state prevails.
Here in Canada, consumer legislation regulates what steps creditors can and cannot take in collecting a debt, and creditor must follow these rules in pursuing their debtors.