China Bans April Fools. Apparently.

As annoying as April Fools pranks can be, we can at least agree that they are harmless fun (well, mostly). China’s government did not see it that way, issuing a decree through the state-controlled Xinhua News Agency that the holiday ran contrary to the values of the nation.

This is according to a report by the AP — not an outlet known for impish April Fools jokes — and appears to be completely legit.

“The so-called Western April Fools’ Day does not conform to Chinese cultural traditions or socialist core values,” read a blog post on Xinhua’s official site. “Hope people won’t believe in rumors, start rumors or spread rumors.”

The AP reports that “Even the official Beijing News newspaper took issue with Xinhua’s kill-joy attitude, asking, ‘what’s wrong with giving people a holiday to express themselves, joke around and find some release?'”

[h/t AP]

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