(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-01-22 07:30

A joint meeting of cheng guan departments from 100 or so cities across the country made a declaration on Sunday, vowing to respond promptly to problems and to do what they can to clean up their public image.

The move is long overdue for these departments - officially the bureaus of administrative law enforcement for urban management.

The joint declaration says rude law enforcement tramples on the spirit of the rule of law and violates human rights, and that they would unswervingly oppose it.

There is no denying that the enforcers from the departments have a multitude of tasks on their shoulder.

According to the regulation concerning their jobs in Beijing, they are duty-bound to stop industries and workshops from polluting the air, the rivers and lakes; ensure safety standards at construction sites and public works; check hygiene and garbage treatment in public places or farmers' markets; and maintain order at parking lots and on streets, among others.

Most cities have similar regulations with legal binding in place.

Despite the fact that their efforts have paid off, they have yet to win public favors because the people do not like to see them chasing unauthorized street peddlers and confiscating their goods and even vehicles.

We would happily express our gratitude were it not for the rudeness they occasionally display in carrying out those duties.

A few have spoiled the good efforts of most of the law enforcers as they resort to outright violence.

In the latest case, cheng guan officers in Tianmen, Hubei province, beat to death a spectator who tried to videotape a violent clash with local residents.

It is high time that these departments made their pledge in response to the ensuing public outrage, which spread nationwide thanks to the Internet.

We hope that these officers will be as sensible in practice as they sound on paper. The only way to repair their credibility is to instill serious self-discipline among their officers.

There are regulations that define what such officers should do but, more importantly, there should be regulations with legal binding on what they should not do.

We cannot leave it to lawless cheng guan squads to execute the law.

(China Daily 01/22/2008 page8)