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Police to focus on rooting out crime
(AP/chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-01-15 14:19
Police in China's capital will focus on rooting out crime and other disruptions to society as part of preparations for the 2008 Olympics, officials said Monday.
Beijing's security plans will get a rigorous tryout this year, with 26 sports test events scheduled to take place, police officials said.
To gear up, police are increasing staff in special Olympic security offices and refining detailed plans for each sporting venue, said Yu Hongyuan, vice director of the Olympic Security Coordination Group, a commission overseeing security plans.
Equally important, Yu said was the overall security in Beijing, and police would target crime and traffic problems as part of their plans.
"A peaceful Beijing is a key factor for a peaceful Olympics," Yu said at a rare media briefing on security preparations.
Security preparations are among the least publicized of Beijing's efforts to prepare for the Games.At the same time, crime in China has soared in recent decades as free-market reforms undermine once rigid social controls.
Beijing is also worried about a militant separatist movement. This month, police raided was a terrorist training camp near the border with Kyrgyzstan.
"The world is still far from peaceful. The Olympic Games have been targeted by terrorists in the past," Qiang Wei, head of the Olympic Security Coordination Group, said at a reception to launch the group's international liaison office. "We must remain on high alert."
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