Manila may ban violent arcade games in clean-up drive

MANILA, Oct 3 (Reuters) Manila could ban violent arcade games in Internet cafes, as its ''Dirty Harry'' mayor steps up a clean-up campaign that has seen bars demolished to clamp down on prostitution and basketball courts dismantled to ease traffic.

The Philippine capital's mayor, Alfredo Lim, said popular computer games, such as ''Counter Strike'', ''Resident Evil'' and ''Generals'' could encourage violent behaviour among children.

''I have asked the city council to study a possible ordinance to ban these violent computer games at Internet cafes and arcades in shopping malls,'' told reporters today.

Lim, a retired police general, is compared to the Clint Eastwood character Dirty Harry for his crusade against street crime.

In July, Lim ordered computer shops in Manila to deny children access to arcade games during school hours, from 7 am to 6 pm on weekdays, to stop students skipping classes.

Since coming into office on June 30, he has demolished cafes and fun spots in Manila's tourist districts in an effort to clamp down on drugs and prostitution, dismantled basketball courts on streets for blocking traffic and imposed tough measures against petty crimes.

REUTERS SKB PM1456