Saturday 21 / December / 2024
We live in a world where public safety is a growing concern of many, particularly those whose everyday life is being disrupted by lack of order and street violence. That gives context to how foreign travelers are impressed by the late night street view in China, where people walk around freely with convenient stores and public facilities readily at their service. Some foreign bloggers expected outings at night to be adventure-like, only to find that it’s absolutely safe in China to go out at night without worries, even for ladies traveling alone. It is, indeed, a country safe for everyone.
Public safety matters both to people’s well-being and a dynamic economy, and is the hallmark of a robust, orderly society. It is thus an important part of the Peaceful China Initiative. China is widely known as one of the safest countries in the world. Its overall crime rate, homicide rate, and gun-crime rate are among the world’s lowest. A 2023 research report showed that 92.8 percent of foreign nationals were satisfied with the overall public safety and security situation in China.
That is no easy feat, and it could not have been achieved without the Chinese government’s hard efforts. Ten years ago, Chinese President Xi Jinping outlined a holistic approach to national security, underscoring that national security is for the benefit of the people and supported by the people. At the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee held in July 2024, the country set a number of important goals. One is to advance the Peaceful China Initiative to a higher level and strengthen the national security system. The foundation is already strong. The Chinese government has been working intensively in recent years to fight crimes and enhance people’s sense of safety, particularly those involving gang mobs, pornography, gambling, narcotics, food safety, medicine, the environment, theft, robbery and fraud. And workplace safety protocols are enforced with real earnest. These efforts have greatly reduced the incidences of crime and public safety violations. Meanwhile, China is working to build smart cities and applying big data and intelligent systems to identify potential dangers and improve public services and governance, buttressing public safety with technology.
In addition to thrust from the government, China’s community-level governance has also played an important part in making the country safe and secure. In the early 1960s, a small town in China’s Zhejiang Province developed a public security approach, which was later known as the Fengqiao model after the name of their town. The main idea was to put community residents, not the government, in the driver’s seat in proposing solutions; localize problem-solving; and realize better security without overuse of penalties. China’s leader Mao Zedong promoted the application of the Fengqiao model and spread it across the country. In the new era, the Fengqiao model has been further refined and delivered on its goal of enabling the public to collaborate on solutions and preventing tensions through early intervention. To date, more than 583,000 community-level institutions known as comprehensive governance centers have been established in townships and urban subdistricts throughout the country, and all communities are zoned into small units called “grids” for more tailored, sophisticated management. Senior citizens are actively signing up for volunteer services and working in dispute mediation teams. Many young joggers are taking on another role as they run in groups at night and also become “eyes on the street”. They call it “jogging patrol.” With members of the public actively involved, a social governance approach based on collaboration, participation and benefit sharing has taken hold.
Our world is fast changing. Societies across the world are seeing more threats and challenges to their peace and quiet. China’s practice of making it more peaceful for everyone under the Peaceful China Initiative can be a useful reference.
