The Wall Street Journal reports on the repercussions of the recent slate of attacks at schools around China:
China’s Ministry of Public Security on Saturday ordered police to add patrols around schools, supply schools with alarms and other protective equipment, and supervise establishments near schools such as Internet cafés, entertainment venues and short-term rental apartments, which pose a potential threat to public order.
While the targeting of children, some as young as 3, has garnered universal condemnation, many see the spate of attacks as a symptom of greater social ills that cannot be deterred simply by heavier punishment. The attacks are a stark contrast to the optimistic image of China’s rising wealth and influence, most recently presented by the extravagant Expo 2010 in Shanghai that opened this weekend.
China’s remarkable economic growth over the past three decades, while bringing hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, has been accompanied by the emergence of complex problems that tend to undermine the ideals of a “harmonious society,” which Beijing sees as necessary to maintaining the legitimacy of the ruling Communist Party. Official corruption, rising income inequality and a frayed social-security system are among the most pressing issues, and now violent crime may be added to the mix.
