At exactly the same moment that the police sniper shot a kidnapper, the latter's dagger cut open the throat of the woman hostage he was holding, killing her.

The case happened in Changchun in Northeast China's Jilin Province, drawing national attention. "The police are not omnipotent, like in the movies," people said. Reality is not as miraculous as fiction - even righteous policemen lose sometimes.

But another incident that took place in downtown Beijing last week seemed unacceptably weird. The police, failing to convince a suicidal man to give up his plan and leave the windowsill of a well-known department store, prepared a huge aircushion for him to land on. The ironical part of the episode occurred when the man jumped from the ledge, landing right on the cushion, yet DYING instantly.

This was so dramatic it seemed almost like fiction. What was the cushion really for? Hadn't the authorities undertaken basic tests of the cushion's function before actually putting it to use?

People said it was "fate" that the man, intending to die, had got what he wanted. But I can't help but worry, what if the cushion was used on another occasion, one that did not involve a suicide case? Anyone falling on a cushion like that could die. Isn't it just common sense to make full test of such equipment before putting it to practical use?

And the family of the victim in the Changchun hostage case have questioned local police about their course of action: why did the sniper wait until the criminal had started to cut the throat of the victim before shooting?

I understand that the police are not supermen, able to show up in time of trouble to rescue everyone. But public servants should have the training and qualifications necessary to stop crime and save people's lives. Isn't this the most important thing?

I read recently that only 30 per cent of crime cases in China are solved, according to statistics from the Ministry of Public Security. The ratio is dreadfully low. People have confidence in China's social stability and witnessed the government's efforts to preserve it. But this frightful ratio will surely encourage more vicious and daring people to make criminal attempts.

Despite the relatively low incidence of crime, I still feel insecure in life. Just think about it: 70 per cent of experienced criminals are wandering around, very probably looking for another opportunity to rob, rape, kill or do even worse.

You may argue that the Chinese police force, like many other aspects of China, unavoidably lags behind developed countries in efficiency, equipment, and so on.

It was reported recently that policemen in Harbin were required to reduce their weight to no more than 75 kilograms. The news story praised some police officers' hard exercises, but I still wonder how can policemen, working on the frontline fighting with criminals, put on as much weight as 90 kilograms? Maybe this can partly explain the surprisingly low ratio of solved crime cases.

The bureaucracy, lack of basic legal knowledge, humane sympathy or even common sense of some regional public service institutions has become quite open in China.

An official from the Supreme Procuratorate pointed out last Monday that it would be a major job from now on to crack down on public servants' infringements of human rights in their work. And he said crimes infringing on human rights occurred mostly in the grassroots layers of public service institutions.

I think his words, if taken seriously, would make a good start for the police, as well as for other public service institutions, to improve their working methods and principles, laying more emphasis on human rights.

The most basic human right is to be free to live. And public servants should first set out to save and protect lives. I pray that they bear this in mind, and cherish human lives no matter how large the national population grows.

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