Can the odor of the public toilets increase the public morality?

01 point of view

Written by: Review Editor

2020-05-20 06:30

There are public toilets in various areas in Hong Kong. Every time people have three rushes, there is always a place nearby to relieve the bladder. However, when it comes to "doing great things", I believe that many people will not stay for a minute because of the bad public toilet environment. They would rather take a few more steps and enjoy a toilet experience that is both airy and fragrant. . However, people's livelihood is no small matter. To solve the problem of poor sanitation in public toilets, besides cultivating public morality, is it feasible to levy public toilets and fine people who violate sanitary measures?

According to a survey conducted by the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies of CUHK in March of this year, six out of 1,000 randomly selected adult interviewees believed that government public toilets were smelly, and 74% and 55% said that public toilets were dry. Flushing and slippery floors. In addition, most of the interviewees believed that the poor sanitation of public toilets was due to the lack of ethics of users. Therefore, 77% of the respondents agreed to impose fines on those who violated the sanitary measures of public toilets.

Public toilet hygiene is difficult to enforce

Although local laws and regulations have imposed fines on people who violate public health, such as littering, cigarette butts and spitting everywhere, it may not be easy to enforce the regulations if they are extended to public toilets. Regarding the "problem of proof", there are violations of public morality in public toilets. Most of them are not like throwing cigarette butts. There are specific "material evidence" that can be given to law enforcement agencies as evidence of prosecution. Take the "slippery ground" in the general men's toilet as an example. The reason is that the citizens leave after washing their hands without drying them, or the people are powerless when they use the toilet, or they are powerless and careless, lacking a standard. The "moisture" that is still not dry on the ground will definitely cause disputes in the prosecution process. Furthermore, the large number of public toilets in Hong Kong will also overwhelm the staff of the "Public Toilets Office". Therefore, whether it is privacy or enforcement, it is difficult for the authorities to monitor the movements of the public when they go to the toilet. The source is hard to say is a good strategy.

So is the public toilet levy feasible? In fact, as early as 2005, the Hong Kong Toilet Association has proposed the introduction of a European toll toilet system. That is, when users put in coins, the facilities in the public toilets will start to operate, and may be operated by the government or private contractors. . Looking at the European example, although the fee-paying toilets undoubtedly greatly reduced the public's demand and usage of public toilets, and some of them also have permanent cleaners in the toilets, the hygiene status has been greatly improved. However, the survey in the same year also pointed out that the sanitation of toilets is not only the primary consideration of the public, but the public also questioned the hygiene guarantee of toll toilets.

Undoubtedly, the poor sanitation of public toilets in Hong Kong is mostly caused by people's lack of ethics. However, in addition to the addition of cleaners and additional hardware resources such as exhaust fans and dryers, the rest of the responsibility falls to each A toilet person. However, the level of civilization in a place is not only reflected in the level of education, but also in the attitude of the public towards "public goods". Even in the CUHK survey, many suggestions for improving the hygiene of public toilets were put forward, such as installing an electronic reminder system to remind users to flush the toilet, recruiting health ambassadors to promote the hygiene of public toilets, etc., but as long as the public remembers "a small step forward The meaning of "a big step of civilization" will also solve the sanitary problems of public toilets.

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