Xi Issues Directives on Building a 'Higher-Level Safe China'

Chinese President Xi Jinping has issued instructions calling for building a "higher-level Safe China" to support the steady progress of Chinese modernization. Conveyed at a national Safe China construction conference in Beijing on September 28, the directives urge comprehensive Party leadership, adherence to the holistic national security concept, and stronger rule of law alongside technological integration. Key security and legal officials, including Chen Wenqing and Wang Xiaohong, outlined operational targets centered on crime prevention, risk resolution, and public governance, while awarding 60 demonstration cities and 160 demonstration counties.

The conference highlights how the central leadership is consolidating public security, social governance, and risk mitigation under a unified institutional framework. By defining specific performance objectives—aiming for a safer state, more orderly society, more effective governance, and higher public satisfaction—and publicly designating model cities and counties, Beijing provides regional law enforcement and judicial apparatuses with concrete benchmarks for future policy enforcement.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for advancing the construction of a "higher-level Safe China" to provide firm security guarantees for Chinese modernization, state media reported following a national work conference held in Beijing on September 28. According to reports published by Xinhua, Xi emphasized that China has made notable achievements in building a secure society since the 18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, consolidating social stability and making the country one of the safest in the world. Looking ahead, Xi instructed that security work must adhere to the holistic national security concept and strengthen the overall leadership of the Party. The directive outlined a framework balancing development and security, combining punishment with prevention, and addressing both symptoms and root causes. Xi specifically called for reinforcing the rule of law and technological empowerment, enhancing public safety governance, improving social governance mechanisms, and preventing and defusing systemic risks. The leadership instructed the security and justice apparatus to pursue progress across four core benchmarks: making the nation more secure, society more orderly, governance more effective, and the public more satisfied. The conference was attended by senior law enforcement and judicial figures. Chen Wenqing, a member of the CCP Central Committee Political Bureau and Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, delivered a keynote address urging officials to resolutely implement Xi's instructions and foster inter-agency synergy under centralized Party leadership. Wang Xiaohong, a member of the CCP Central Committee Secretariat and Minister of Public Security, gave the concluding address. Wang stressed the need to anchor work to the "four mores" target, urging the security apparatus to focus on priority tasks, innovate governance methods, and solidify grassroots operational foundations. Supreme People's Court President Zhang Jun and Supreme People's Procuratorate Procurator-General Ying Yong also attended the meeting. During the gathering, the central leadership formally designated 60 demonstration cities and 160 demonstration counties for their performance in Safe China construction, showcasing localized models for social stability and public administration.