(Sony A55; a security guard in Beijing)
At the very mention of security guard in China, the image of a fierce looking, ill-mannered man immediately comes to mind. In Hong Kong, it is not unusual to hear news reports about the misdemeanours of security guards in Mainland China. Just in May, a young groom from Hong Kong was reportedly bitten to death by the security guards in a hotel there. The whole truth of it might never be known though.
Chip Tsao, Hong Kong’s talk show maven and popular columnist, once commented in his usual sarcastic style that Hong Kong is increasingly moving after the motherland towards the rule by security guards. True, in Hong Kong, one will now be more likely tickled by them in a threatening manner when wandering in a sensitive area or acting suspiciously to them. While the Hong Kong Police, formerly known as Royal Hong Kong Police Force, has adopted a friendlier and more transparent culture, the security guards are filling the vacuum of the patronising role of the former royal protectors.
One country, no two security guard systems.
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