| |
| | CNN.com - Risqué car plates prompt China ban - August 23, 2002 |
 | | About 7,000 car owners in Beijing, Tianjin, Hangzhou and Shenzen bought the plates, the report said, with drivers signing up for any three letter-three number sequence not already claimed for the usual 100 yuan ($12) licensing fee. |
 | | Cars carrying SEX-001, USA-911, UFO-001, 001-CEO and HKG-097 were turning heads as were vehicles with names of official businesses or agencies such as the CIA and FBI on their plates, the South China Morning Post reported. |
 | | The suspension of the plates has shocked vehicle owners and the four cities that had been issuing the registrations have reverted back to the randomly generated five-character plates. |
| archives.cnn.com /2002/WORLD/asiapcf/east/08/23/china.car (302 words) |
|