uniforms

i mentioned in one of my missives that the chinese out of uniform are a friendly and cheerful people. in uniform they seem to be something else! it slowly dawned on me that there were an awful lot of uniforms on the chinese streets, more even than moscow, and particularly in beijing, where we noticed an inordinate number of 'uniforms' sporting 'beijing security' badges. the uniforms always carried a lot of badges, buttons, braid, belts and boots! strange in a land where mao is always pictured in his simple peasant dress.

it wasn't long before i began to categorise them into comic, job's worth and, scarily, sinister.

comic
at most traffic junctions despite an extremely efficient set of lights; those for cars, those for bikes, those for pedestrians and a count down system so you know if you should scuttle across rather than stroll, there were often policemen as well.
at one particular crossing in xi'an we observed with glee four policemen 'changing guard'. the two on duty were in rain capes; one on a plinth making arm signals and half turns like an automaton and the other standing around at his feet. the two taking over arrived at the plinth and there was snapping to attention and sharp salutes all round. then the action went all sloppy as they debated who was going to have the rain capes! there was a bit of a stand off and then the capes were handed over. all this time the traffic continued to flow quite easily without any help from the 'uniforms'. up on the plinth the new officer on duty went into stiff armed action, now equipped for the weather! :)

job's worth
also at the junctions as if you didn't already have enough information to guide you across the road safely there were 'traffic assistants'; fetchingly dressed in mustard shellsuits in shanghai and blue pyjamas in beijing, topped off with soft baseball caps. whistles, batons or flags, in combination or all three at once completed the look. they used the batons to keep back the pedestrians and the whistle to warn wouldbe offenders not to move prematurely!
i stumbled off the kerb in shanghai and was treated to the full works. fixed irate stare, whistle blown in a continuous shriek and the baton pointed, straight armed, into my face. i was sorely tempted to knock it away but didn't. it stops being comic and/or annoying and becomes intimidating.

like the policemen in tian'anmen square. macy, our guide, said many more were on duty 'for safety' during the holiday week, i felt it was more for hassling.
as you enter the square proper from the pedestrian crossings one side of the gap in the metal crush barriers is 'guarded' by a soldier in green on his dais under a green parasol and the other by a policeman in blue on his dais under a blue parasol. i'm making an assumption about the soldier's identity, the policeman not requiring one as his parasol was labelled 'police'!
as we crossed into the gap i had to sidestep as a second policeman stopped a woman in front of me. she went to open her bag. for id i suppose? but why? she carried no large bag or bundle so couldn't have been a hawker. a grey haired elderly lady, probably a tourist like me, but chinese.
a while later we used the subway to leave the square. sensibly it had been roped off to keep the flow of pedestrians separate. very wise when the space was as crowded as it had been on the holiday monday but this was four in the afternoon and the place was virtually deserted. even so an elderly couple walking the 'wrong way' were pounced on by an unsmiling youth in uniform. you want to say 'oh, per..lease!' but you don't, you just put your head down and keep walking...in the right direction. shades of '1984' went through my head!

sinister
my sensitivity has been heightened to all this by an unpleasant incident as we left xi'an. we had been collected by grace and our driver, mr wang, to be taken to the station. mr wang pulled into the parking area and as we all got out four uniformed guys all converged on the car. they barked at him and took his keys. we tried to get our luggage from the locked boot and grace remonstrated...ineffectually. she was only a young girl. after polite requests from lou and some shoving and pushing of mr wang by the four uniforms, the boot was opened by the biggest one. we grabbed our stuff, not easy as it was cumbersome, and headed across the staion forecourt with grace. scarily two of the guys followed us, one questioning grace, the other lou. lou said it seemed to be about whether mr wang was a taxi. lou said 'no, our car driver' and kept walking! grace delivered us to the waiting room and hurried back. she seemed to think they were not police. taxi rank 'assistants'? station guards? horrible, whatever they were!
i felt thoroughly shaken by it. sorry for mr wang and grace but helpless to assist in any way and just wanted to get on the train and leave xi'an behind...which is what we did an hour later to my great relief!
but what of mr wang? he came from the town by the hot springs and was married with a two year old son. he didn't seem a criminal, just bored by his driving job at times. a mystery, the outcome of which we shall never know.
i think it was this incident that began my sense of homesickness for the peace and relative security of gagnac...that and its wide open green spaces!

a happier footnote to xi'an
as we waited for the train in xi'an that horrible eveing we were all deafened by the female announcer who spoke only in chinese.(although there was an announcement board in english that we could see). a young couple with a child sitting alongside were soon giggling with us as we all jumped at each new onslaught from the tannoy above our heads. eventually the wife asked me where we were going and on finding out we were getting the same train she said she would make sure we didn't get left behind!
see? out of uniform, cheerful and friendly! :)