Group dancing also takes place at Changle Park in Xi'an, capital of Southwest China's Shaanxi province, May 4, 2013. [Photo/CFP]

SQUARE DANCING, which often involves many elderly women dancing collectively outdoors to loud music, is one of the forms of exercise that should be promoted in the government's fitness drive, said Liu Peng, head of the General Administration of Sport of China. Gmw.cn commented on Saturday:

Square dancing has become increasingly popular because a growing number of Chinese are concerned about fitness and health. With the continuing rise in their annual average income, more tend to take better care of their health by doing indoor or outdoor exercises.

But it has been demonized for disturbing other residents and occupying public spaces, and there have even been confrontations between the young and old, as well as square dancers and those who do not join them. This, to some extent, mirrors the scarcity of public spaces.

Liu's endorsement of square dancing, which came as the State Council approved the National Fitness Program (2016-20) aimed at promoting all forms of exercise, highlights the need to balance the interests of all parties concerned. That requires local governments to put more efforts into building public sports facilities.

The rise of square dancing in recent years also points to the rapidly aging population in the country. It is time for the country to pay more attention to people's fitness, and make fair arrangements in regards to their use of public facilities and space.