Traffic police in Da Nang City are attracting much public attention with their unconventional way to punish offenses. Thu Tuyet, a 22-year-old student, posted on an online forum Saturday that she was stopped by a team of traffic police officers a day earlier for driving on the wrong side of the street.

Tuyet was worried that she would receive a ticket. After producing papers, she was told by the officers that she could choose to write the sentence “I promise I will not drive on the wrong side again” 20 times.She was allowed to go after finishing the writing punishment. The officers said those who failed to produce papers would have to write 30 times. Tuyet said she was surprised, adding that she would never forget her violation.

Her story was widely shared, stirring some controversy on the Internet. But most of the comments were positive, with many praising the officers for the friendly educational approach. Colonel Le Ngoc, Da Nang’s police chief, told Thanh Nien on Sunday the punishment is similar to a warning, and local traffic police wanted the violators to remember not to repeat the act. He said the police did not want to make certain violators, such as students and workers, pay cash fines “because they are poor.