Playing card games in China could be more than just a pastime. Youmay stumble on a small fortune if you keep your eyes open for thefaces on the cards and those around you.
A card game player hit the jackpot recently when crime busters inHenan Province went one better than the "Most Wanted Iraqi PlayingCards," fashioned by the US military in late 2003 to help soldiersidentify key members of Saddam Hussein's government.
Murder suspect Zhang Zhijun was apprehended on January 26, 71 daysafter 500,000 packs of playing cards bearing his and 14 other murdersuspects' names and pictures were given out to the public.
The 20,000-yuan (US$2,484) reward for information leading to hisarrest put Zhang, the king of hearts on the cards, behind bars.
"Had it not been for the playing cards, my days of freedom couldhave been longer," the haggard-looking fugitive was reportedly heardmumbling after his arrest.
Police authorities were also elated by an avalanche of leads onthe whereabouts of the other suspects.
But their joy was short-lived, for soon they were dragged into awhirlpool of debate over their choice of playing cards, instead ofconventional mediums such as posters, newspapers, TV and theInternet, to pursue criminal suspects on the run.
Opponents took recourse to a social problem, pointing at thepotential risk of reputation damage if police got the wrong person onthe list. They also expressed fear that the lasting effect of suchplaying cards may cast a long shadow on convicts' efforts to reformand resettle back into the community.
The debate still seems to be raging. But shouldn't we welcome theidea to rope in the public in the fight against crime in one of theworld's most lightly policed countries?
With a poorly budgeted police force of 1.7 million (only abouthalf of them on the streets), China has fewer police officers perthousand people than the world's average. Nonetheless, they handled4.6 million criminal cases last year in as big a precinct as 9.6million square kilometres.
We know that fugitives are prone to commit new crimes to financetheir flight from the law. And unless they are brought to justicepromptly, public safety could be compromised. Given this situation,can we rely solely on a force already stretched to the limits to dothe job?
Card games are a national pastime for the Chinese. Tens ofmillions while away their time at the table every day. So think ofhow great a help it can be if the "most-wanted" playing cards canhelp police involve even a tiny fraction of this population in thefight against crime.
Moreover, this novel medium is more cost-effective than thetraditional ones such as posters, newspaper and TV advertisements,for a pack of cards could cost as little as 1.62 yuan (20 US cents).
What about the Internet, then? Well, fugitives are liable tochoose hideouts where more often than not people are deprived of thismodern means of communication. But they play cards!
And why shouldn't police use cards to chase criminal suspects whenan increasing number of businesses are doing so to advertise theirproducts and services?
Accepted, police at times bungle with their fugitive list. Butsuch mistakes are the result of their sloppy work, which irrespectiveof the medium they choose will have the same repercussions.
So let's have a set of foolproof rules before finalizing thewanted list.
For a start, the list needs to be confined to perpetrators ofheinous crimes that carry a life or capital sentence. And the listmust be compiled based on hard evidence.
Playing cards are innocent. Go on enjoying the games and watch outfor the bounty that may come with it.
Email: zouhr@chinadaily.com.hk
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