‘Socialism is good, socialism is good!’: Chinese tourists raise eyebrows by singing revolutionary songs outside UN headquarters in New York

A group of Chinese tourists has sparked a debate in China after they sang revolutionary songs outside the headquarters of the United Nations.

The group of 36 travellers from Jinan in Shandong province were among the first batch of tourists to take part in a promotion encouraging Chinese visitors to visit the United States called “Hello America”, according to the Jinan Daily.

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The group, aged about 50 to 60, sang songs praising the accomplishments of the Communist Party and Mao Zedong in New York at the end of their 14-day tour around the US, according to the article.

WATCH: Chinese tourists sing revolutionary songs outside UN headquarters

“Socialism is good, socialism is good! People of socialist countries have high social status。 Reactionaries are overthrown. Imperialism tucks its tail and flees,” they sang in the lyrics of one famous song composed in 1958 in honour of an “anti-rightist movement” led by Mao.

The article about the group’s singing in the Jinan Daily attracted more than 66,000 comments within 12 hours.

One comment, which received the most likes from other readers, said it was a shame that the group had chosen to sing such controversial songs outside a building like the United Nations.

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Mao is still revered among many in China as the father of the nation, but the turmoil created during his control of the Communist Party during periods such as the Cultural Revolution are highly sensitive issues.

Others, however, commented that it was entirely natural for tourists of that generation to sing the songs and they were merely showing their happiness during their holiday.