Official Drinking in China

(Guangdong Province, China) Government officials are regularly keeling over dead or falling into comas from drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. The deaths occur during and immediately after alcohol-soaked job-related events. Drinking is considered part of the job at official events and it's all paid for by the taxpayer, of course.

Jin Guoqing, a deputy director in Xinzhou district, Lu Yanpeng, a district chief in Guangdong Province, and Guo Shizhong, a family planning official from Hunan Province, are all recent casualties.

An official in Shandong province, who requested to remain anonymous, said: "We would lose face if we could not get our guests drunk. Refusing to drink is considered disrespectful.

"Neither my guests nor I want to get drunk but we have to play under the unspoken rule, which has been around for so long. We don't know how to do business otherwise."

They added some officials even hire secretaries who are heavy drinkers so they can be their "drinking assistant" and help consume the necessary alcohol.

"To ganbei each other, or make a toast, is a Chinese way of communication, it is a part of the culture," explained Li.

Therefore, to be polite, foreigners visiting China will likely be expected to get hammered at official events.