A barbecue restaurant in north-western China has caused outrage over a poster on its premises that has been deemed sexist and misogynistic.

The poster, meant to promote alcohol sales to female customers, shows a drawing of the back of a woman in skimpy underwear and fishnet stockings. A slogan next to it says “Get yourself drunk to give him a chance”.

The poster has sparked furious debate over the issue of sexism in China, reported the South China Morning Post.

Fuelling the debate were comments by a woman who works at the restaurant in Shaanxi province, who said the slogan was just a “joke”.

She told a Chinese media outlet that the poster has been on display for years and never raised eyebrows.

Speaking to the media outlet Gongfu Caijing on May 29, the woman said “you don’t have to take it seriously”.

On Chinese social media, some netizens slammed the restaurant’s slogan for “instigating people to commit crimes”.

According to Chinese criminal law, having sexual intercourse with women who are drunk without their consent constitutes rape. Perpetrators can be jailed for three to 10 years.

This is not the first time controversial promotional material in China has caused offence.

Women’s wellness tonic brand, Five Doctors, is being investigated for false advertising and “vulgar” content, according to bi-monthly magazine, The World of Chinese.

The ads are said to be perpetuating anxiety about women’s age and appearance, and reinforcing negative stereotypes about female PhD holders as being unfeminine and undesirable to men.

Advertising laws in China ban gender discriminatory content.

But a 2020 article by the Institute for Security & Development Policy, a non-profit organisation, said these laws and regulations have not made clear the sorts of behaviour and content that are considered discriminatory.

For this reason, enforcing these laws becomes difficult.