Tuesday 24 February 2009

Officials trained to tackle jobless unrest

Mainland authorities were training thousands of security officials to get them ready for possible social unrest as millions of rural workers are laid off amid a sharp economic slowdown, a government ministry said yesterday.

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Guanyu said...

Officials trained to tackle jobless unrest

Associated Press in Beijing
24 February 2009

Mainland authorities were training thousands of security officials to get them ready for possible social unrest as millions of rural workers are laid off amid a sharp economic slowdown, a government ministry said yesterday.

Government concerns about unrest have risen in recent months as the economic crunch deepens and more than 20 million rural migrant workers have lost their jobs. Layoffs have already led workers in some cities to take to the streets in protest at factory shutdowns or to demand back pay.

More than 3,000 public security directors will be trained in Beijing by mid-June to improve responses to threats to public security in the provinces, a statement on the Ministry of Public Security’s website said.

In a speech at the opening day of training workshops, Public Security Minister Meng Jianzhu urged officials to be “rational, easy-going, civilised and proper” in enforcing the law.

The sessions were “urgently needed for the heavy and difficult task of maintaining stability this year”, Mr. Meng said on the website.

Public security officials should work proactively to “explore new solutions to solving the people’s grievances [and] be deeply involved with the people”.

Mr. Meng’s comments were the latest in a string of public announcements by central leaders warning officials to be on guard against political turmoil.