Chinese vigilante who steals sleeping traveller’s shoes ignites online debate

A Chinese man who filmed himself binning the shoes of a barefoot traveller has ignited a social media frenzy.

The footage shows a man at an airport in southern Xiamen province, taking the person’s shoes and throwing them into a public bin.

The man says: “I saw a man lying on the seats with his shoes and socks off. What will foreigners think if they see such ill manners – they will wonder about how low people’s standards are,” the BBC reports.

The man, who remains unnamed in local reports, also appears angry that two airport workers walked past the shoeless man but took no action, according to the Shaghaiist.

After being uploaded onto the web portal NetEase, the video quickly went viral across the Chinese internet.

The video has amassed over 10,000 comments, while over 28,000 users have shared the footage.

Being barefoot is a social taboo in China where feet are an important part of Chinese culture.

Feet play a key role in Chinese medicine and the ancient tradition of foot binding, or lotus feet, was a symbol of beauty and status in the country before being outlawed in 1911.

The divisive video has sparked a mixed range of comments, with many commending the man for doing “the right thing” and others suggesting his behaviour was “illegal”.

One commenter reportedly said: “The only way that these kind of people can be made to understand how disgusting their actions are is by blunt methods like this. I applauded this young man!”

Another commenter said: “Taking your shoes off in public is certainly uncivilized; however, stealing someone's shoes and throwing them in the trash is illegal.”

Other claimed the vlogger was seeking attention and should have spoken with the man first.

"Why not just wake the man up and talk with him? Because that kind of video would not make you famous?" wrote one online user.

Xiamen International Airport is understood to have responded to video, saying they have no code of conduct regulations and can only persuade travellers not to disturb their fellow passengers.

They added that the vlogger should have asked airport staff for help before throwing away the shoes.