We’ve all sat on the bus or on the subway, bored stiff, with nothing to watch but the LCD screen playing the same programs again and again and again. The bus has taught me how to cook stir fried squid, how to choose the right size socks, and the cartoons on the subway have kept my toddler son, who absolutely hates riding the underground, occupied for at least ten precious minutes. Recently we’ve read that Subway Line 4, when it opens, will include live programming on its LCD screens, which means that subway passengers will not have to sit through boring and repetitive programs, but will instead be able to see sportscasts, popular TV shows, concerts and more. As subway commutes get longer and more common among Beijing’s population, who would object to a bit more entertainment?
Photo: _mixer_
There was one more detail, however, about the new live feeds that caught our attention, however, and that was how the LCD screens on Line 4 will double as surveillance cameras. This is reportedly for our own safety, and admittedly one can, off the top of one’s head, think of many plausible reasons why it might be a good idea to have camera surveillance on subways. Pickpocketing is a huge problem in subways not just in Beijing, but all over the world, and I imagine a few would-be thieves would be deterred by the idea that they were being monitored in real time by the authorities. Of course, there are even more dangerous scenarios than petty robbery. Just last year two people were killed when a bus was bombed in Kunming, and in the UK, London knows all too well the catastrophic potential of attacks on a city’s subway system. Certainly China has reasons for wanting cameras on its subways, and in this day and age, who can blame the government for taking precautions?
Well, some can. The live monitors to be installed on Line 4 have been met with criticism by some, who claim that China is going overboard with the monitoring. With this year’s all important 60th anniversary of the founding of the PRC fast approaching, China has drastically stepped up its security measures, installing 2.75 million surveillance cameras since 2003. Surveillance cameras are, of course, not unique to China, and while the 2.75 million figure may seem shocking, the number of cameras working in the UK, for example, is almost double that amount. Surveillance cameras are ostensibly used to prevent crime, but studies show that they actually have had little effect on crime prevention, as people are often not easily identifiable on camera, and the evidence supplied by cameras is not always useful. So if cameras don’t always help us catch criminals, then what’s the point? Some would argue deterrence. The very idea of being monitored might be enough to keep some criminals from acting, or, at least from acting in areas where they know there are cameras. Video camera surveillance is one of the most obvious means of “watching” the people, as most cameras are not hidden, even in China.
Photo: Flynn Wynn
***
Related Links
Live TV is to be Available on Line 4
China Says 2.75 Million Security Cameras Installed
Security for 60th anniversary beefed up
Shanghai Metro's New Operation System
Warning:The use of any news and articles published on eChinacities.com without written permission from eChinacities.com constitutes copyright infringement, and legal action can be taken.
All comments are subject to moderation by eChinacities.com staff. Because we wish to encourage healthy and productive dialogue we ask that all comments remain polite, free of profanity or name calling, and relevant to the original post and subsequent discussion. Comments will not be deleted because of the viewpoints they express, only if the mode of expression itself is inappropriate.
Please login to add a comment. Click here to login immediately.
Only in China try doing this in any other country its an invation of privacy, but then China dont know what that is
Dec 11, 2011 21:47 Report Abuse