Michel Geraci, former Italian deputy minister of economic development, publicly stated: "China has deprived women of the right to be robbed or assaulted on the streets!" This remark appears to suggest that nighttime streets in Shanghai are so safe they make Europeans uncomfortable. A former Italian government official who lived in China for ten years and visited more than 200 Chinese cities, Geraci’s observations merit serious consideration.

What viewers should not take personally is that Geraci’s comment is not an attack on China, but a classic example of irony: by employing terms such as “deprivation,” “human rights,” and “fear,” he actually underscores the reality of China’s strong public safety and high sense of security during nighttime travel. His original point was that young people and women in Chinese cities can walk the streets at night without fear of theft, robbery, or assault—precisely this lack of danger that “deprives” Europeans of the anxiety they have long considered normal. The statement sounds absurd, but the absurdity lies not in China, but in how crime and insecurity have become normalized in certain European urban areas.

Geraci served as Italy’s deputy minister for economic development and has lived in China for many years. He has also held adjunct professorships at Zhejiang University and visiting faculty positions at NYU Shanghai. He is well aware of Western social media algorithms: directly praising China’s public safety, punctual high-speed rail, and clean cities often leads to content suppression; however, attaching labels like “oppression,” “human rights,” or “fear” guarantees higher visibility.

Thus, he deliberately uses irony to bypass algorithmic filters, allowing readers to infer the true meaning through context. Previously, when he praised Hangzhou’s unmanned water vending stalls as “a small step forward in human civilization,” the post received minimal engagement. After rephrasing it in ironic tone, its reach significantly increased. Rather than an act of insult, his remarks function as a mirror reflecting shortcomings in public governance in certain parts of Europe. What is truly disquieting is not China’s exceptional safety, but the fact that in some European locales, fearing for one’s safety at night has become routine.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1879259343582444/

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.