AT THE southern resort of Beihai, dozens of attractive young women in bathing suits lounge on the beach, not for the fun of soaking up the sun or the romance of listening to the waves roll in. This is business: for a fee, the women will accompany men for aswim, allowing themselves to be hugged and caressed.
In the interior city of Lanzhou, young women hang around a pool hall where again, for a price, they will have a game of billiards with any man who wants to pay for their charms. They are even tactful enough to let the men win, unless asked to play for real, in which case the women show off impressive dexterity with their cues.
Bathing and billiard escorts are the latest twist in a phenomenon which has the Chinese Government less than amused. Rich men no longer need to eat, drink, sing and watch movies alone, thanks to a variety of specialised escort services.
The services are a seedier side of a revived sexism which has become almost fashionable in China. Economic reform is giving women new opportunities in education and business, as witnessed by the growing number of female entrepreneurs. But it is also in many respects turning them into commodities whose value is judged by their decorative potential, whether they are working as secretaries or bar hostesses.
''We don't think we can change men within our generation,'' said Xie Lihua, chief editor of a woman's magazine. ''Thousands of years of feudalism has left too much in their minds.'' The government and the Women's Federation is less than amused by the escort services.
Last summer, the authorities declared war on the so-called ''three accompanies'': accompanying men to dance, drink and sing (though nothing was said about billiards, swimming or movies).