Jinan, January 12 (Zhou Yiwei) – "I have participated in over 1,100 arrest missions, and everyone calls me 'The Ever-Changing Golden Gang.' 'Gold' is my faith, 'Gang' is my name, and 'ever-changing' is the skill of a special police officer in the new era," said Song Qinggang, captain of the assault and attack brigade of the Linyi Municipal Public Security Bureau's Special Police Detachment, at a press conference held in Jinan, Shandong on January 12, themed "Loyal Guardianship Shines the Police Badge."
Since 2019, Shandong police officers have been named "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers" by the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Ministry of Public Security for seven consecutive years, making Shandong one of the provinces with the most recipients. This meeting was not only a display of honors, but also a heartfelt story about faith, warmth, and inheritance.
The scene of the press conference. Photo provided by the Information Office of the Shandong Provincial People's Government."The suspect fell less than a meter from me," Song Qinggang recalled a mountain search during a blizzard. Facing a murder suspect hiding in a cave and launching a knife-wielding attack, he was the first to crawl into the cramped space, barely wide enough for one person to squeeze through. Just as the knife grazed his face, he decisively fired, successfully killing the assailant. In his 13 years as a special police officer, he faced over 300 serious violent crime suspects; behind these numbers lies his silent vow of "golden shield, loyalty to the people."
Jia Mingyi, the director of the Shixi Police Station of the Bincheng Branch of the Binzhou Public Security Bureau and one of the "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers" in 2020, was a veteran criminal investigator who had worked in criminal investigation for more than 20 years. When he went abroad on a mission, he shaved his head, wore sunglasses, and went undercover as a gambler. He didn't sleep for two days and one night. Faced with the local gangsters' blatant taunts of "holding a gun to the head of a Chinese policeman," he finally brought the suspects to justice.
"Being a criminal investigator means being a wall, blocking danger in front and protecting peace behind." Now, Jia Mingyi, who has been transferred to the position of police station director, is transforming from a "crime-solving expert" into a "community steward," measuring public sentiment with his footsteps and exchanging sincerity for peace of mind.
If special police and criminal police safeguard the "hard security" of society, then community police officers weave a soft "safety net." Ma Huailong, a community police officer at Xinglong Road Police Station of Shibei Branch of Qingdao Municipal Public Security Bureau, was named one of the "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers" in 2023. For 18 years, he has been rooted in the old city, taking care of more than 40 orphaned and disabled families. He holds 49 keys to residents' homes, each one representing a heavy responsibility.
Ma Huailong explained that some of the key owners are bedridden and need him to deliver meals daily; others have no family nearby and need him to spend more time with them; some elderly people have even made wills, entrusting him with their funeral arrangements. In the winter of 2024, after rescuing Wang Liangshui, an elderly man who had been homeless for 33 years, he led volunteers to help the elderly man clean his house, paint the walls, and furnish it. Wang Liangshui gradually settled down and now practices calligraphy at home every day. Today, the "Ma Huailong Golden Shield Volunteer Service Team" has grown to more than 380 members, including lawyers, doctors, and technicians, transforming neighborhood mutual assistance into a collaborative governance force.
On Sanshan Island in Laizhou, on the coast of the Bohai Bay, incidents of fishermen causing trouble while drunk were frequent, resulting in over 500 police calls annually at the port. Sun Jianhao, the instructor of the Laizhou Port Police Station of the Laizhou Public Security Bureau in Yantai, and a recipient of the 2024 "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officer" award, traversed every corner of the port area on foot, gaining a thorough understanding of the situation of 1,100 vessels and over 10,000 fishermen. "We started by resolving conflicts and disputes, establishing the first coastal social governance center in the country, which transformed the port from chaos to order, resulting in a 97% decrease in police incidents."
Fu Shaogang, an instructor with the Criminal Investigation Brigade of the Longkou Public Security Bureau in Yantai, was named one of the "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers" in 2019. With 20 years of police experience, he has investigated over a thousand cases, faced armed suspects 19 times, and confronted gunmen 4 times. "Some people ask me, 'Have you had enough?' I say, 'No, I haven't!'" he says. Protecting the people is always his duty, and whatever the people hate, the police will resolutely fight against.
At the meeting, Li Sheng, deputy captain of the Second Squadron of the Shibei District Traffic Police Brigade of the Qingdao Municipal Public Security Bureau and one of the "Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers" of 2021, recounted the story of his father, martyr Li Yong. In the early morning of October 3, 2021, Li Yong heroically sacrificed his life to save a driver while performing National Day security duties; that day happened to be Li Sheng's birthday. "From childhood to adulthood, he was always like this; while others rushed home, he went out."
Now, Li Sheng wears a police uniform and becomes a traffic police officer. She says that when she directs traffic, drivers sometimes roll down their windows and give her a thumbs-up. Some say, "This is Li Yong's daughter," while many others call her "Officer Li." "I think this is my glory, but even more so, it is my father's glory. Inheritance is not about copying, but about continuing the core spirit." (End)
