Beijing, Mar 19 (IANS): China's goth community has united in protest after a woman was made to remove her dark make-up before being allowed to enter a busy subway, the media reported on Tuesday.

On March 10, the woman wearing dark lipstick and heavy eye make-up was stopped at the security check point of a subway station in Guangzhou city, reports the BBC.

She described the experience on her Sina Weibo microblog, saying: "A female security guard called her manager, and said that my make-up was 'problematic and really horrible'."

She adds that she was asked to "please remove it" or would be refused entry to avoid "distressing" other passengers.

The Guangzhou subway has since apologised and says that it had carried out an investigation and found that staff handled the situation inappropriately.

Since similar incidents have come to light, some 5,000 Weibo users have begun using the hashtag #ASelfieForTheGuangzhouMetro and sharing pictures of themselves in gothic make-up and attire.

In spite of the apology, China's netizens are saying that it is their freedom to dress however they want and are calling for wider acceptance of subversive styles.

Many shared pictures of themselves out in public and said that they will not be made to feel invisible.

The woman's post has been shared more than 5,000 times.

Gothic culture has entered the mainland largely as a Japanese import, as a result of the growing popularity of "Lolita fashion" - a style of clothing with Victorian and Edwardian influences, the BBC said.

Japanese manga novels, and the "Twilight" novel franchise have also been influential in bringing gothic culture to China.