China’s Central Military Commission, which is headed by President Xi Jinping himself, has banned the use of military license plates for a long list of vehicles, most of them belonging in the luxury segment. This, according to the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) Daily, the country’s armed forces official newspaper, has been done in order to “maintain social harmony, stability and the reputation of the military”.
Although China is a goldmine for premium brands the report said that allowing luxury cars to use military plates “is at odds with our army’s glorious tradition and not conclusive to building the military’s moral.” Since May 1, all existing military license plates have been cancelled in an effort to stop the sale of both legal and counterfeit ones.
Unsurprisingly, the internet played a role in the Chinese government’s decision. “In recent years, irregularities in the use of military cars have drawn public attention,” the official Xinhua News Agency said in a report. “Some internet users have posted snapshots on popular Twitter-like microblogs featuring limos with military license plates.”
The PLA has issued a special report with the list of vehicles that will no longer be allowed to use military plates. This includes cars from Bentley, Porsche, Jaguar, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Lincoln as well as vehicles priced above 450,000 yuan (US$73,000) and sporting an engine with a capacity exceeding 3.0 liters. Oh, and the VW Phaeton…
Registering and issue of the new plates will be done through a computer database that will automatically bar all vehicles that are included in the official list. Moreover, in its effort to detect counterfeit plates, the military will match license plates with electronic toll collection cards.
By Andrew Tsaousis
Story References: Bloomberg
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