Beijing\u2019s municipal branch of the state security bureau published new regulations on Monday, encouraging people to report foreign spies, with a cash rewards of up 500,000 yuan (US$72,400)….<\/b>
Beijing\u2019s municipal branch of the state security bureau published new regulations on Monday, encouraging people to report foreign spies, with a cash rewards of up 500,000 yuan (US$72,400). The capital\u2019s residents can report through a hotline, by mail or in person any activity endangering China\u2019s national security or thefts of national secrets, the and other state media reported. The top reward for whistle-blowers ranges from 100,000 yuan to 500,000 yuan, depending how important the intelligence is, according to the article. The announcement comes as the central government has become increasingly suspicious of overseas organisations and personnel. Foreign non-governmental organisations in China, for example, are now required to register with the police rather than the civil affairs authority, as they used to. Beijing state security posted cartoons in public venues early last year warning young Chinese women to be careful if dating foreign men because they could be spies. Under the new regulations, any reports that prove unfounded will be tolerated as long as the informer was not deliberately giving false information or trying to harass someone. \u201cBeijing is the top choice for overseas spy agencies and other hostile forces to conduct activities of infiltration, subversion, division, destruction and information theft,\u201d a statement from the security bureau said. The state security apparatus has decided to motivate the masses to \u201cgradually build up a steel Great Wall against spies and espionage\u201d, the statement added. A national hotline was set up two years ago in China to report spying.<\/p>\n