A Paradigm for Peaceful Yinchuan Initiative

Zhang Minjiao

Located in the far northwest of China， Yinchuan was once the heartland of the Hetao Culture along the Silk Road. The city is reputed as the Oasis Beyond the Great Wall， as an 80-kilometer section of the Yellow River runs through the city， with over 200 lakes， swamps and wetlands， taking the edge off the searingly hot summers and bitterly cold winters of the region. At present， this renowned historical and cultural city has made notable progress in its Peaceful Yinchuan Initiative. It ranked among the top 10 happiest cities among Chinese provincial capitals for 2018-2019， and peoples senses of fulfillment， happiness and security have improved. Enduring public order and lasting social stability have become the name card for Yinchuan.

Multi-Pronged Governance with Ethnic Characteristics

“To adapt the Fengqiao experience to the local context and adhere to the CPCs Mass Line bears on the Peaceful Initiatives of Yinchuan city and Ningxia Hui Minority Autonomous Region （hereafter referred to as the NHMAR） and the images of the local CPC committees and governments， which is of great importance. Under the strong leadership of the CPC Committees and Governments of NHAR and Yinchuan City， and the Ministry of Public Security and the NHAR Public Security Department， the Yinchuan Municipal Public Security Bureau （hereafter referred to as the YMPSB） adopts and promotes the Fengqiao experience in line with President Xis instruction. Bearing in mind the big picture of harmony between different ethnic groups and regional stability， conditions of less-developed areas and the geographical location of Yinchuan， the YMPSB has been working hard to build Yinchuan into the safest city in China through multi-pronged governance and brand building. It has extended the benefits of public security to consolidate local governance. It has established communication channels with the public. It has set the Yinchuan paradigm in carrying out a social security campaign， and realized greater national unity， amity and social harmony between different ethnic groups， winning the title of Demo Unit for Promoting National Unity in China，” said Wu Qidong， Vice Mayor of Yinchuan and Director of the YMPSB， while introducing the citys experience in social governance and innovative practices.

The various initiatives of higher-ups fall onto local police units to execute and implement on the ground， as local teams form the foundation of public security affairs. Their performance directly touches upon peoples life and work， as well as the results of public security campaigns of Yinchuan and the region. The purpose of creating the Yinchuan paradigm is to consolidate local governance and improve community-oriented services.

In 2019， the Xinhua Street Police Station of Xingqing District Branch Bureau of Yinchuan City was approved as one of the first “Fengqiao-style” police stations in China. Yuhuangge North Street Police Station of the Xingqing District Branch Bureau and Xijiao Police Station of the Lingwu Municipal Public Security Bureau were named Fengqiao police stations in Ningxia. Under the principle of “each local police unit must have unique characteristics and a brand，” the YMPSB has selected 38 standard police offices across the city and built them into fine examples. The practices of the Qingshan Police Office have been promoted citywide.

Three-Plus Model to Solve Community-Based Problems

I visited the Qingshan Police Office in July. “Our jurisdiction is a rural-urban fringe zone. There are around 50 residential communities， of which over 40 are old neighborhoods without property management. In addition， there are over 80 business entities， including 11 key ones such as gas stations， commercial zones， and coach stations. The large number of migrant populations， old residential communities and variety of business entities present three heavy burdens to us，” said Liu Yi， a seasoned police officer at this office.

Liu， a policewoman with 18 years service， has rich experience in dealing with community-oriented issues. She has broken down large problems and created a “three-plus” case-handling model， consisting of "Internet plus local residents，” “big data plus on-site investigation，” and “volunteers plus community workers.” In 2018， the police office established an online mediation platform in cooperation with communities， judicial institutions， legal professionals， volunteers， and public mediation organizations to solve conflicts and disputes. Since the onset of Covid-19， this platform has been widely used， as its convenient and efficient.

Liu said proudly that this online platform， young as it is， could provide tailored solutions to different situations. “Quarrels between neighbors can be resolved by peacemakers in our group chats; family squabbles or marital problems will addressed by professionals and lawyers in the chats. We provide customized solutions.”

Taking the advantage of campaigns such as “police officers pairing up with households” and door-to-door registration during Covid-19 epidemic， Liu and her colleagues were always taking the lead in sorting out disputes in communities， and established a tiered household management system marked by colors. Specifically， all disputes are graded in red， yellow or orange according to the severity and will be subject to follow-up supervision. The team investigated over 3，000 households， mediated 80-plus family and marital disputes， uncovered eight pyramid scheme hideouts， handled a score of administrative cases， and defused over 80 potential safety hazards. Notably， 76% of households categorized as high-risk by this system have melt into zero-risk.

“To run communities well， the efforts of police officers are far from enough. If the people trust us， they will become our source of information. Police offices are platforms to mobilize the public to build more harmonious and safer communities together.” These words， though simple， underscored Lius unswerving efforts.

Unmanned Police Office to Deliver Last-mile Service

Huaiyuan Night Market is a popular destination for tourists with daily passenger flow of 40，000， which rises to 50，000 or 100，000 passengers on holidays， making it the busiest fair in Yinchuan. On the other side of the street stands a two-floor building in blue and white. This is the Huaiyuan Police Office. Beside the office is an eye-cathing sign： “24-hour Self-service Area for Police-related Affairs”.

“Hello sir， Im here to apply for a police clearance certificate，” said a lad in his 20s as he entered the office.

“Please scan your ID card on the kiosk in the self-service area， put in your information， provide the SMS verification code， and youll get it，” replied the receiving police officer Fan Junwei. Under his guidance， the young man got the document in a few minutes.

One of the first policemen at the office， Fan has been in service for three years. According to him， there are 15 universities，? colleges or technical schools， over 70 hotels， as well as a high density of shops， students and tourists around the Huaiyuan Police Office. In 2019， a 24-hour self-service area was opened， making it easy for people nearby to apply for temporary ID certificates， residence permits， police clearance certificates， travel endorsements to Hong Kong， Macao and Taiwan， and deal with motor vehicle and drivers license related affairs.

This is the first unmanned police office in Yinchuan. Today， there are 12 unmanned self-service areas across the city. They help solve problems for residents who are unable to take time off during the workday， and deliver services to peoples doorsteps. They offer 26 service items in three categories， including transport， exit and entry， and household registration and administrative services， thus offering easier access to the police.

Since the downtown area is overwhelmed with shops， police officers have to handle a variety of disputes and conflicts.

“Sir， many deliverymen are staying at the entrance of our department store for air conditioning. I cant drive them away！” A senior with a security officer armband rushed into the office in anger. Fan listened carefully and replied， “Its very hot these days. Couriers are exposed to the scorching sun on the job. Of course they may need a break in a cool place from time to time. If they cause inconvenience， you can ask them to go somewhere less crowded inside. We need mutual understanding. If they wont listen to you， you can come to me， OK？” The security guard calmed down after hearing these words and returned to his place.

Such scenarios take place almost every day. During the Covid-19 epidemic， shops in the basement floor of the department store were kept closed for several months. Shop owners didnt have income but still needed to pay rent each month， so they became discontented with the store. Informed about the situation， police officers contacted the stores supervisory body， and negotiated with shop owners， the store， and the management to resolve disputes in a timely manner. In addition to the police， the neighborhood is kept safe and orderly through voluntary patrols and reconciliation teams initiated by the residents， and the Sun Xianmei Studio， a demo community-oriented service station.

Local residents are grateful for what police officers have done and they have presented appreciation banners to the Huaiyuan Police Station. But the policemen are all reluctant to receive the banners because they may add extra costs to the locals who are not affluent. A “thank you” is enough.

From Desert to Golden Sands

Xihaigu in Ningxia is called “the most inhospitable and barren land on earth.” In the spring of 1997， Xi Jinping， then Deputy Secretary of the Fujian Provincial CPC Committee， paid an inspection visit to Ningxia to carry out a paired-up poverty alleviation program. Shocked by Xihaigus impoverishment， he suggested relocating its residents to the virgin land of the Hetao Plain in Yinchuan and transformed it into a new homeland for these people. He then named this place “Minning Town” afterwards. Yuanlong Village of Minning Town of Yongning County is the largest migrant village in the area. Over 1，900 households were from Yuanzhou District and Longde County of Guyuan City， 33% of whom are Hui people. The migrants took advantage of local conditions to plant grapes and raspberries， developed the integrated modern agriculture industry of beef cattle breeding， as well as photovoltaic power generation and greenhouse， agri-tourism， and service industries. In 2020， Yuanlong Village shook off poverty and transformed itself from a desert into a golden treasure land. All these changes could not be achieved without the support of village-based police officers.

There is a small courtyard at the entrance of Yuanlong Village with Chinese characters hanging on the gate that read “courtyard of harmony.” Inside is a pavilion and several offices. It looks like nothing out of the ordinary， and can only be distinguished from other buildings by its sign： Yuanlong Village Police Office. Liu Yan， a village-based police officer， said that the gate is kept open for villagers. Police officers and auxiliary policemen are required to visit local households every day and at least 20 households per week. But in fact， the real number far exceeds that figure. The purpose of door-to-door visits is to collect the basic information of every household， discover and resolve disputes， publicize laws and regulations， report their findings to competent authorities， and take joint efforts to solve these problems. “Early detection and early settlement of disputes” is their guiding principle.

The country fair on Thursdays find the locals trade vegetables， fruits， snacks， and apparel. Villagers would greet Liu： “Miss， come here and taste a piece of melon. Its sweet.” Liu smiled while turning down his kindness， “Thank you， but I come here for business.”

Suddenly， a clamor broke out. Liu moved closer. Liu asked an angry seller， “Madam， whats going on？ Why did you call him names？” Liu figured out that there was another vendor trying to peddle green peppers at a much lower price， so the female seller was afraid that her competitor might undercut her. Understanding the situation， Liu started mediating in the dispute.

“Madam， you shouldnt swear. I just asked the man and he told me that his green peppers will go bad tomorrow so he had to sell them off now. But yours are in good quality， why would you worry about it？ Just as you quarreled， nobody dares come up for your vegetables. It wont do you any good， will it？”

“Sir， what the madam did was wrong. Come on， youre a happy person so dont put on a long face...” Her words worked and bystanders left. Before she walked away， Liu asked vendors nearby to help with persuasion if this would happen again.

Liu deals with such trifles almost every day. The villagers have saved her phone number and will contact her in case of problems. However， things were not so good when she first came here.

After graduation， she was assigned to Yuanlong Village as a community-based police officer. However， she couldnt understand their dialect and encountered a lot of problems. She began to mobilize the local residents and established a voluntary service group of 35 people including party members， community-oriented administrators， and volunteers to serve on the front line to carry out security patrols， facilitate dispute settlement and rule out other security risks.

The police office has also invited respectable seniors who are adept at dealing with local issues to form a “senior mediators” volunteer group. Their advantage in self-administration and governance has assisted the police to resolve conflicts and disputes， thus becoming a brand in the region. In 2019， a CCTV system was established in Yuanlong Village thanks to the Xueliang Project， a national initiative aiming at strengthening public security in Chinas rural areas， and villagers sense of security was improved. Nowadays， with the concerted efforts of police officers， the number of disputes and public security cases has been on constant decline for years and there have been zero criminal cases in three years.

Round-the-Clock Services by the Exit and Entry Administration

Entering the Yinchuan Exit and Entry Administration （hereafter referred to as the YEEA） at the Yinchuan Citizens Hall， one is always immediately greeted by a guide. According to Ma Yang， Director of the YEEA， many countries have imposed more rigorous restrictions on overseas arrivals due to Covid-19. To avoid cross-infection， the administration suggests canceling or postponing unnecessary and non-urgent travel plans to overseas destinations. After Covid-19 struck， business applications have decreased a large amount， but its police officers remain on post to provide year-round 24-hour services. To be specific， one-stop on-site service， service reservation， and round-the-clock hotline services have been provided to the people since February 11， 2021.

In December 2020， the first international integrated service station （service station for immigration affairs） was established in the NHAR through the joint efforts of the YMPSB， Yinchuan Foreign Affairs Office， Huaiyuan Police Office， the YEEA， and others. The purpose of the station is to offer one-stop solutions for immigration affairs and to make foreign nationals life and work much easier.

In response to Covid-19， the YEEA members set up a task force to forestall inbound transmission through precision management supported by big data. The YEEA police officers paid visits to foreign-related institutions such as high-tech companies， universities， and foreign languages training centers to publicize its one-stop services， inbound and outbound travel policies， and to give out guidebooks.

During this process， Cheng Zhirui， the YEEAs Deputy Director， was informed about a Uzbek student in Ningxia University. The student was faced with a dilemma： it was difficult to go back to his country due to Covid-19， while he would graduate and his visa would expire soon. After communicating with the student， Cheng found out that he wanted stay in China. So the policeman coordinated with the university and other related departments， helped the foreign student to obtain a masters program in a college in Henan province， and renewed his visa. This story exemplifies how the YEEA served the people.

During the epidemic， the YEEA members also visited Xiaoxing Spandex Co.， Ltd. and introduced exit and entry policies as well as related laws and regulations to its general manager from the ROK and foreign employees. It has contributed its share to creating a sound business environment for high-quality economic development.

The Fengqiao motto of “settling disputes at local levels， safeguarding public security， and providing all-round services” has been well adapted to Yinchuans realities， facilitated the establishment of the Yinchuan paradigm， and will continue to prosper with renewed vitality in the new era. According to Yinchuans Vice Mayor Wu Qidong， in order to further develop the Yinchuan paradigm， the YMPSB will improve its social governance capacity through the application of information technologies and big data， so as to better serve its people and create a more secure and stable social environment for ecological conservation and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin.■

（ Translated by Agnes ）