I went to China twice in December. First trip was to Shanghai in early of the month, second trip to Guangzhou with my parents recently.
Two things I have observed in both my trips are:
I) The value of our currency, Ringgit vs RMB has been decreasing from month to month. Things are getting so expensive in China for we Malaysians now;
2) Tourists and citizens in the big cities of China can feel very safe as there is strong presence of police in the crowded shopping areas as well as tourists centered areas.
When I was in Shanghai, I stayed in a hotel in Xin Tian Di area (新天地，an upper middle class shopping and eateries area, like Bangsar or Damansara in Kuala Lumpur). I saw the presence of uniformed and plain clothes police during the day and night time. A police container office is located at the traffic light junction with police officers patrolling the area.
In my trip to Guangzhou this time, I was so surprised to see the strong presence of police and municipal council’s buggies in the shopping area in Li Wan District (荔湾区). The police container office and the police buggies are placed at the cross road of the shoppers walking area. People approach the police for road direction and other enquiries.
A young Chinese lady told me that her friends who used to come to Malaysia have stopped coming now as they feel unsafe in Malaysia. Yes, we have to admit that safety is a grave concern for tourists and locals in Malaysia. We hardly see that many police officers patrolling in the city centre of Kuala Lumpur or in any shopping areas like the way the police do in the big cities China.
Something for our IGP and Home Ministry to learn from China ……. I hope our IGP can put in more efforts in strengthening the security in crowded areas in Kuala Lumpur and other cities in Malaysia, rather than monitoring the statements of activists and opposition parties, so that Malaysia will become a safer and more attractive tourists destination.
