When I was worked for a branch office of a mult-national company we had regular visits from VIPs from home office. The higher up the visitor, the more effort was put into preparations and cleaning up the office. Boxes and junk regularly left around the office was cleared away out of sight. For a brief time the office looked clean and tidy. I wondered if the visitors even noticed that the office had been cleaned up, dare they even look in the storage rooms where the junk was piled up.

I always thought it would be better if we left the office as it was, as it would give the visitors a truer feeling of how things operated. Of course once the visit was over the boxes and other junk came out of the storage rooms and life went back to normal. I think it is an interesting metaphor for China’s preparations for the Beijing Olympics.

Last week the police raided a popular nightclub area in Beijing looking for people selling and in possession of drugs.

Here is a report from the China Daily:

Police in Beijing apprehended more than 20 people, including eight foreigners, in suspicion of using and trafficking drugs in two downtown bars, said Beijing’s pubic security authority early on Saturday.

After investigations at the area, police confirmed that Phoenix Cafe and Pure Girl Bar were the two places that drug-traffickers frequented.

Here is one foreigner’s perspective of what went on:

My overall impression is that: 1) this raid was much more coordinated that the one last October; 2) given the numerous photographers, it was meant to send a very public message; 3) now is not the time to be acting recklessly in Beijing; and 4) it’s a good idea to have your identification papers with you.

Here is another take on what happened:

On a less cheery note, I got a call from a British colleague who said his son had nearly got caught up in a periodic police raid in Sanlitun, which is a nightlife hub in Beijing.

A virtual SWAT team descended on an ally that is very popular with the young expat crowd (teen-agers, twentysomethings) and started checking for drugs. They were particularly rigorous in checking whether everyone had their documents in order.

He goes on to write:

I was speaking with a senior U.N. official based here and he was grumbling about the increased restrictions on foreigners. I asked what he meant. “More ID checking, housing checking. They have also increased arrests and deportations of foreigners.” With worries high about activists and their possible shenanigans at the Summer Olympics, he said, “they just suspect everybody who doesn’t look Chinese.”

Gay activists are using the Beijing Olympics to highlight the problems and discrimination they face in China. The article points out a number of police crackdowns, but doesn’t say specifically whether they are related to the Olympics.

Just last week we reported that Beijing has forced brothels and dubious massage shops to close their doors.

Beijing is also getting tougher on who and the type of visas it is issuing foreigners. From a story in the South China Morning Post:

Beijing has stopped issuing multiple-entry visas, risking major inconvenience to foreigners who travel to the mainland regularly, especially on business. Hong Kong travel agents say the ban will stay in place until after the Olympic Games.

It seems against logic that the government would try to stop foreigners from entering China leading up to the Olympic Games.

While I am not saying that cleaning up crime in Beijing is wrong, it does make you wonder about what was happening in the city before the Olympic games came to the city. Some of the raids sound like they were a little over the top, but I suppose at least the authorities have now made their point.

As Sergeant Phil Esterhaus from the Hill Street Blues used to say, “Let’s be careful out there”.