China plans to introduce new regulations governing the training
and supervision of security guards in order to prevent possible
embezzlement.
Ma Weiya, an official with the Ministry of Public Security, said
yesterday that since the first security guard company was launched
in the boomtown of Shenzhen in 1984, China now has 2,258 security
guard companies with 1.03 million authorized personnel. The country
currently has another 3 million people waiting to be approved as
guards.
"The security guard sector is developing rapidly but problems
still exist. For instance,?some security guards?stole
what was entrusted to their care," said Ma.
The regulations will stipulate how security guards should be
trained and supervised as well as the punishments for those
involved in criminal activities, he said.
Ma said security guards played an important role in maintaining
social stability. Last year alone they provided 96,000 clues in
connection with criminal cases to police authorities. Based on
the?clues more than 117,000 criminal suspects were arrested
and 1.89 billion yuan (US$236.7 million)?of public and
individual assets recovered.
From 2001 to 2005 a total of 153 security guards lost their
lives when performing duties. ?
The regulations will also include provisions on protecting a
security guard's legitimate rights, Ma added.
(Xinhua News Agency August 16, 2006)