Zhejiang Village Analysis Essay

Zhejiang village is located in Beijing in the south in an area known as Nanwan whose location from Qianmen commercial district is 5 kilometers. The government got interested in the issues arising in the Zhejiang village given that it was relatively underdeveloped and impoverished. The poor in the Zhejiang village had gone, and those that majorly occupied Zhejiang village in large numbers consisted of migrants moving from Zhejiang province. The village grew rapidly between 1983 to 1993 whereby the migrant population was about 30,000 people which is about 60 percent of the total village population. The numbers of the migrants kept on escalating, and the government felt it was the high time they came in to address the matter. The paper shall illustrate the reason why Zhejiang posed a security threat, methods used by the government in response to the threat and finally whether the methods used were consistent with other actions and policies of the government.

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The increased population in the Zhejiang village came with its fair share of demerits, for instance, the strain in the resources from the city and social amenities. The hygiene services and medical support available were fewer which led to even the veterinary doctors offering the functions of the medical doctors. The Zhejiang village presents a significant threat to the government and also Beijing because of the deteriorating state of affairs in the village. The reasons range from increased migrants to increased crime. The government did not have proper control of the village, and the diseases which got out of hand in case of an outbreak would spread to the city which creates a significant cause for alarm (Chen, Cheng, Lestz & Spence, 2013, p. 150). The crime rate in the village spiraled to pose a threat to even the city. Another weighty issue between the government and the migrants was the existing frosty relations given that migrant residents avoided paying taxes to the authorities. The Zhejiang village became a hub for criminal activities and presents another critical area of contention regarding the trade in fake or contraband goods that came from the village factories. Illegal activities such as prostitution, gang activities, drug use, armed robberies, murder, increased abuse and kidnapping posed very pertinent issues and the severe security threat to the Beijing people and the government. The primary contention with the government was that the village posed a grave security threat to Beijing and the government resolved to find a solution to the problem.

The government used various methods to undertake the rectification and clean-up work. The first method, the government did not use the local Fengtai area force even though the operation was in their jurisdiction they instead made use of Beijing Public Security Bureau whereby Zhang Liangji became the commander-in-chief who was assisted by other four deputy bureaus (Chen, Cheng, Lestz & Spence, 2013, p. 152). They held a meeting to take a look at the reports. After the scrutiny of the report, they resolved to set up 14 security headquarters in Big Red Gate locality to be able to guide the operation efficiently. Also, another 5-headquarters put up in places with high workloads such as Shi village. The method used was meant to ensure smooth operation through the enhancement of the police force capacity in case of large-scale incidents. Besides, the operation also included 1500 other police officers in the second division.

The police used diplomatic methods instead of engaging the migrants in forceful eviction. They started by patrolling and arrest of criminals. The area was a fire hazard they, therefore, put the focus on identification of fire hazards which they effectively eliminated (Chen, Cheng, Lestz & Spence, 2013, p. 156). The police acted professional which saw many people have trust in them to also be able to detect crime. The method that was the primary key to the success of the rectification and clean-up was the use of propaganda and the minimization of the critical opponents. The bureau police officer alongside other officers led a massive propaganda movement that convinced the people. They in the same vain informed the people that in the case of violence or disturbances against the rectification they would have to come down to resolve any form of criminal activity. The method was a success, and as a result, in the rectification and clean-up, there was no case of any worker getting hurt or even safety or accident related to the demolition exercise. The first step involved convincing the landlords to allow the demolition. There were cases of passive resistance, and the police chose to meet the landlords to explain the existing situation. Some owners gave in, but others who were adamant sometimes got detained if they tried to come in the way of the clean-up.

The government response in Zhejiang village was not consistent with its other actions and policies to incidents post-1978. The efforts by the government are different, for instance, in operation in the Zhejiang village the process did not use the Fengtai local police only but also other cadres and the most notable being the Beijing Public Security Bureau (Chen, Cheng, Lestz & Spence, 2013, p. 151). Another clear example to show that the government was not consistent is the use of propaganda among the masses to convince them to move in the rectification and clean-up. The government follows through its policies as truth, and the use of propaganda in Zhejiang village was a change from its standard policies and actions (Dutton, 2000). The government initiated innovative ways, for instance, convincing the people to allow the process to get rid of illegal structures to go through properly. The government handled the case differently by also first receiving a report which they came up with resolutions on how to go about the problem in Zhejiang village.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the policies and activities of the government during the operation were different and better. The government and Beijing people are wary of the deteriorating state of the Zhejiang village, and the process gets carried out when they find it crucial. The people had a wrong understanding of the police because of the impression they created, for instance, they were known to be corrupt and discriminative of the migrants. In this case, the police have a different approach towards the migrants and treat them with dignity. The police during their operations to tackle crime also find the murderer of a woman who gets killed during the ongoing operation they also keep in a safe place a television they discover in the service until the owners come to take the belongings. The methods used by the government indicate they are well thought out and diplomatic because there are no alarming incidents.

References

Chen, J. Y., Cheng, P. K., Lestz, M. E., & Spence, J. D. (Eds.). (2013). The Search for Modern China: A Documentary Collection. WW Norton.

Dutton, M. (2000). Street life China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.