Public shies away from ringing endorsement to connecting disengaged populace

Shanghai Telephone thought it had a way to let customers stay in touch.

In the interest of giving the public a bit of information, it tried to make a more serious effort at disclosing home telephone numbers. It told customers that their home numbers would be published unless they voiced an objection.

Unlisted numbers would be free of charge initially but after a cut-off date, they would cost 10 yuan (about HK$9.30).

Publishing telephone numbers is not a revolutionary idea. One or two other countries have found great benefits in doing so, particularly for people who occasionally need to make phone calls.

Charging for unlisted numbers is also not unusual.

But the Shanghai public did not give this idea a ringing endorsement. The telephone company (there is no competition for fixed-line service as yet) faced angry opposition, and the plan was disconnected.

'There were some misunderstandings,' said a Shanghai Telephone employee.

'Some people objected. There will be no policy change.' Shanghai has about five million telephone subscribers - three million at private residences. Most of the phone company's customers had made it known whether or not they wanted to have their number listed.

But about 300,000 had not expressed an opinion, and this was where the problem arose.

These customers were on the verge of making a momentous decision - to disclose or not disclose. Residents complained the notification period was too short and that the manner of notification - a slip of paper included with the monthly phone bill - was insufficient.

Newspapers and a few lawyers got into the act. China Central Television reported on the issue, and it must have made some people a little nervous.

'We were told by government leaders to resolve this issue,' said the telephone company employee.

Why such a big fuss over a tiny bit of public information? Perhaps it is a reflection of how little transparency there is in the mainland, which despite more than two decades of a widely trumpeted reform and opening campaign, is still steeped in a tradition of secrecy.

Beijing information gives a listing for the Communist Party - not exactly an underground organisation - but a voice at the other end of the line insists this is a wrong number.

There is no listing for the State Council, the mainland's top government office, or the powerful military commission, and no one bothers to answer the main number at the Defence Ministry.

This is also a country where in 1989 the former head of the Communist Party, Zhao Ziyang, could be taken to task for disclosing what everyone already knew - that Deng Xiaoping was really in charge even though he had no party or government jobs.

Mr Zhao was also disclosing this vital piece of information to someone who was then considered to be a fellow traveller - Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It is unclear whether Mr Zhao, who has spent more than a decade under house arrest, would prefer to have his home phone number listed at this time.

Some of the concerns about giving out information are understandable. Police had expressed worries that criminals might use phone listings to target victims. The mainland's legal system provides only the flimsiest protection. Scams are common - so who wants to invite trouble? 'I don't want people to know my phone number,' says a lecturer at Fudan University.

'If you give out phone numbers you are just helping salesmen.' There are many people who sympathise with that point of view - both here and abroad.

'I'm really afraid of telephone sales people,' says another office worker. 'They can be very persistent.' Now, it is not as if there is not any demand for telephone numbers. The Yellow Pages business, for example, is thriving in Shanghai.

'There's a huge interest in advertising,' said Michael O'Malley, director of sales development for Bell Atlantic, the United States company which has an advertising joint venture with Shanghai Yellow Pages.

Mr O'Malley says the three-year-old venture, which focuses on the city's growing commercial sector, is ahead of sales targets.

But what about those home phone numbers? The existing home directory, in addition to being short on information, is also in short supply.

After three years, many residents and phone users have never received a copy.

A call to the telephone company indicates that a further wait is necessary, although the presentation of 250 yuan can secure a copy at one of the 10 outlets for this city of 16 million people.

Asking '114' directory assistance is not much better.

A recorded announcement helpfully tells customers: 'Private number directory assistance is temporarily unavailable.' An online service is supposed to be ready soon but that, too, is not yet in operation. Until then, if you need information in the mainland, try writing a letter.