Police department of Shenzhe,
Guangdong Province, ?has deployed more than half its
personnel to patrol the city's streets and communities as part of a
reform implemented Saturday.
Before the reform took place, the city's police were divided
into different squads, with only a small number of them patrolling
the streets. This has resulted in low effectiveness in combating
crimes and responding to reports from residents.
The reform has reinforced frontline police deployment by
combining the community squads, social security squads and patrol
squads. All the city's 115 police stations completed the shakeup
Saturday, which has enabled policemen to respond more quickly.
The number of policemen patrolling the Huaqiangbei shopping area
increased from about 20 to 35 after the reform. Only 80 complaints
were filed Saturday, as compared to an average of more than 100
each day before the reform, the Yuanling Police Station said.
This marked another bold attempt by the police to make the city
a safer place after residents complained of a high incidence of
crimes, especially robbery and burglary, amid a rapid growth of
migrant population.
The police announced last Friday that they had busted 63
criminal gangs in a month since a citywide campaign targeting
pickpockets and robbers was launched February 27.
More than half of the gangs were rounded up when trying to
commit crimes on buses and at bus stations, while the others were
caught in commercial areas and parks. Some 670 suspects were
arrested with stolen goods worth 200,000 yuan (US$25,000)
confiscated, according to Qian Wei, a police spokesman.
"Shortly after the
Chinese New Year, stealing and robbery cases soared in
Shenzhen. So the police launched this two-month campaign. Now the
situation has been much improved," said Qian.
Most of the criminal gangs were well organized and had set up
complete networks of theft, robbery and selling ill-gotten goods.
Many had account books recording the sales, which provided evidence
for their crimes.
"Fourteen public transport companies in Shenzhen have organized
special teams targeting pickpockets. These teams were trained by
the police and cooperate with policemen in keeping public order.
Such forces might be the first of its kind in China and have set up
an example for pickpocket crackdown," he said.
He also said that the police are in the process of installing
digital cameras on buses. By the end of June, 8,500 buses in the
city will be equipped with cameras, which will help reduce crimes
onboard buses.
(Shenzhen Daily April 3, 2006)