Exotic dancers banned from performing at funerals in China

A striptease show is not what most mourners would expect at a funeral. But the more people that come to a funeral in China, the better the deceased is likely to fare in the afterlife, which is why some families have taken to hiring exotic dancers to keep attendance figures high.

Now Chinese officials are cracking down after the state broadcaster, CCTV, ran a report about two groups of strippers performing at a farmer's funeral in the eastern province of Jiangsu.

The next day, police arrested the organisers and five women for "obscene performances". Local officials were told they must submit plans for funerals within 12 hours after a villager dies. Exotic dancing is off the menu - and residents can report "funeral misdeeds" on a special hotline for a reward of £20.

In China mourners wear white, not black, and funeral processions are led by men clashing cymbals and playing musical instruments. Other mourners set off firecrackers.

But striptease had also become a popular way of luring more people to funerals. Wealthy families will often employ two dance troupes. And it can pay off - there were more than 200 spectators at the funeral in Jiangsu.

For £200, dancers will stand on top of a van singing and dancing. Once the van gets to the cemetery, the women strip off.

Two years ago, a family in the southern province of Fujian paid a dance troupe £80 to take part in a funeral service for their 70-year-old grandmother. Five women danced around in their underwear and attracted an audience of about 20.