Public Security, or Public Nuisance?

With the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in power, China's political and legal systems are full of corruption and abuse of power. The Public Security Bureau is in fact turning into a public nuisance and inciting outrage at every turn. The courts practically openly demand money for one to receive justice.

The Hong Kong-based Dongxiang Magazine recently disclosed how Zhou Yongkang's family has enriched itself illegally. They have made over one billion yuan (US$143 million) from issuing illicit automobile licenses over the past ten years. Zhou is a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and the Secretary of the CCP Central Political and Legislative Affairs Committee.

The article also disclosed that according to an official report in 2005, the public security system's abuse of power ramped up in the second half of 1999. Apparently, this was a side effect of harshly dealing with religious groups. The suppression geared towards Falun Gong gave the public safety system too much power. When people from the public security system murdered Falun Gong practitioners during interrogation, looted their homes for valuables, or made up evidence to obtain prison and forced labour camp sentences, they were not punished, but rather rewarded with promotions and bonuses.

As of May 1, 2009, at least 3,263 Falun Gong practitioners have died from the persecution. This is only the verifiable number, whereas the true death toll is likely much higher. Ethan Gutmann, writer and investigative reporter for the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, claims that although the confirmed number is 3,263, there are at least 10,000 practitioners whose organs were removed against their will. Leeshai Lemish, Gutmann's colleague, puts that number to be above 100,000.

The aforementioned 2005 report suggests that the suppression of 100 million Falun Gong practitioners has had consequences in every segment of society. For example, a 24-year-old man from Yunnan Province, who is not a Falun Gong practitioner, died 11 days after he was held in a detention centre. The Puning County Public Security Bureau claimed that he had died while playing hide-and-seek with other inmates. They claimed that he suffered severe head trauma when he ran into the corner between a wall and a door, which led to his death.

The Public Security Bureau has made a specialty out of arresting Falun Gong practitioners, kindhearted people who practice Truth-Compassion-Tolerance. When public security officers abuse their power and murder innocent people, society takes the wrong direction, moral values deteriorate and criminal activities rise. Perhaps a popular saying captures it the best, "The bandits have moved their base from the mountains to the public security bureau."