Beijing puts foot down on ‘Oba Mao’ T-shirts



Posted: Friday, November 13, 2009 5:21 PM
Filed Under: Beijing, China
By NBC News' Bo Gu

BEIJING – Liu Mingjie expected that President Barack Obama’s first visit to China would bring more business to his little boutique shop in Beijing’s popular Houhai area, a lakeside district filled with trendy restaurants and bars, souvenir shops and lots of tourists.

Until last weekend, Liu had been interviewed by both Chinese and foreign media about what he was selling: T-shirts that superimposed Obama's face over that of China's late Chairman Mao Zedong on the front, and the words "Oba Mao" on the back.

But Lui’s brisk business was suddenly terminated by local government officials, just days before Obama’s arrival in China, without any explanation. He says he was simply told, "No, you cannot sell Obama T-shirts anymore."

Bo Gu / NBC News
Liu Mingjie shows off the “Oba Maoâ€