People's Armed Police

In July 1949, the CMC decided to establish the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) with Luo Ruiqing as its minister to organize the public security forces in the nation.[8] In August 1949, several security and public order units of the Fourth Field Army were consolidated into the Central Column of the Chinese People's Public Security Force (PSF) to guard the Party and State leaders and to keep the public order in the capital.[8] The Central Column provided security for the inauguration ceremony of the People's Republic.[8] From December 1949 to May 1950, regional security forces, along with the now dissolved Central Column, had been consolidated into divisions under the PSF.[8]

The PSF was assigned to the PLA and became the PLA Public Security Force in September 1950, and the PLA Public Security Corps in July 1955, reporting under the Central Military Commission of the CCP and the National Defense Council of the People's Republic.[8][5] Luo Ruiqing was appointed as the commander and political commissar of the PSF in September 1950 and remained on the posts until 1959, retaining the command of the PSF.[8][12]

As of 1960, the Public Security Corps was organised in 8,200-strong Public Security Divisions, which were deemed not capable of independent, sustained, full-scale combat operations.[13]

After numerous reorganizations and transfers of control between the PLA and the MPS, the People's Armed Police was created on 19 June 1982, combining the previous armed police, border guards and fire brigades.[8] The headquarter was set up in the MPS as a subordinate department.[14] The establishment of the PAP highlighted the efforts to increase the professionalization of the security apparatus, as well as the absorption of numerous PLA demobilized personnel,[15]^{: 228–229} in the wake of growing unrest.[15]^: 229

The PAP was led by both the local government and superior PAP forces, which is called "Dual-Leadership" (双重领导). In practice, the local government (including the local party committee, local people's government and the local public security bureau) carries more weight. However, there were many confusions and loopholes caused by this ambiguous organization structure.

In the mid and late 1990s, CCP general secretary Jiang Zemin significantly expanded and strengthened the PAP, with more than 100,000 new troops.[16] Jiang praised the PAP, describing it as "a major force for maintaining state security and social stability, the People's Armed Police shoulders a massive and formidable burden" and deployed it extensively in Xinjiang and Tibet.[16]

Up until 2013, the China Coast Guard was a part of the PAP. In 2013, it was separated and transferred to the direct control of the Ministry of Public Security and the State Oceanic Administration. However, in March 2018, it was announced that the Coast Guard would be placed under the People's Armed Police Force once again since the State Oceanic Administration was disbanded, but now as an independent branch reporting directly to PAP headquarters.[17]

Wheeled APC (WZ-551) of the People's Armed Police

Until 31 December 2017, the People's Armed Police had a dual command structure including the Central Military Commission (CMC) and the State Council through the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).[7]^: 18

Prior to the 2018 reform, the People's Armed Police was further divided into eight corps: Internal Guard, Gold, Forestry, Hydropower, Transportation, Border Defense, Firefighting, and Safeguard Corps.[15]^: 232 The Internal Guard Corps, which makes up for the bulk of PAP, is under the PAP Headquarters and reports thus to the party central committee and the CMC (Central Military Commission). The Gold, Forestry, Hydropower, and Transportation Corps, collectively known as the Specialist Corps, were by then under the joint leadership of PAP Headquarters and their respective ministries in the State Council.[15]^: 232 The Border Defense, Firefighting, and Guard Corps, collectively known as the Public Security Corps, were then under the direct supervision of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).[15]^: 232

By law however, the PAP operates separately from the PLA.[7]^: 18 and, in terms of conducting public security operations and relevant capability building, the PAP Headquarters is under the leadership and command of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).

From 1 January 2018, command of the People's Armed Police is jointly held by the CCP central committee and the Central Military Commission (CMC), with the PAP no longer subordinate to the State Council.[18]

The reform was reportedly carried out in order to deprive the local Chinese Communist Party authorities of the power to use the PAP units to commit abuses or against the leadership in Beijing, especially after the Wang Lijun incident in which the PAP was allegedly abused by provincial party secretary Bo Xilai to surround the US Consulate in Chongqing after a falling out with Wang, the police chief of Chongqing at the time. Under the 2018 reforms, local authorities now need central approval in order to deploy the PAP.[19]

On 10 January 2018, the PAP received a new flag following the design of the branch flags of the PLA with three olive stripes at the bottom. The three olive stripes represents the People's Armed Police responsible for the three main tasks and force composition of maintaining national political security and social stability, maritime rights protection and law enforcement, and defense operations. [20]

On 21 March 2018, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party unveiled a reform plan for the People's Armed Police Force.[21] Under this plan, the non-combatant elements of the PAP, the Gold, Forestry, Hydropower, Border Defense, Firefighting, and Guard Corps, are to be removed and the CCG is to be consolidated with PAP.[22] As of March 2018, the PAP is working with the Central Committee and the relevant organs for the transfer of non-combatant elements into civil service.[22] The Transportation Corps is the only remaining component of the Specialist Corps.

Until 2018, the Specialist Corps were responsible in constructing and maintaining highways and roads, surveying mineral deposits, fighting forest fires, and constructing large scale [23] waterworks like dams and levees as well as for water works maintenance.[24] The PAP is also called upon in emergency rescue and disaster relief operations within the PRC via the specialist and public security forces which can be forward deployed during such operations.[24]

With the 2018 reforms, Specialist Corps other than the Transportation Corps have been placed under other ministries. China Coast Guard (CCG) was transferred from State Council to PAP command, and the Transportation Corps has some units under the Mobile Contingents.[23]^: 15

The Border Defense Corps and Guards Corps have been absorbed by the Ministry of Public Security (MPS). The Firefighting and Forestry Corps were merged with the fire department of the MPS and reorganized as China Fire and Rescue (CF&R), it was placed under the Ministry of Emergency Management. The Gold Corps and Hydropower Corps have been transformed into state-owned enterprises under the supervision of the relevant State Council ministries (Ministry of Natural Resources and China National Gold Group Corporation and China Aneng Construction Corporation, respectively).[23]^: 15

From the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the paramilitary public security force has been reorganized numerous times. The current designation since 1982, the People's Armed Police, was first used between 1959 and 1963.[5][25]

• 1949–1950: Chinese People's Public Security Force, under the Ministry of Public Security (MPS)
• 1950–1955: Public Security Force, under the People's Liberation Army (PLA)
• 1955–1959: Public Security Corps, under the PLA
• 1959–1963: People's Armed Police, under the joint leadership of the MPS and the PLA
• 1963–1966: Chinese People's Public Security Force, under the joint leadership of the MPS and the PLA
• 1966–1982: PLA Internal Guard, absorbed into the PLA in an integrated structure. In 1971 and 1973, some units were transferred to the MPS
• 1982–present: People's Armed Police (PAP)

While the People's Armed Police is principally charged with internal security and guarding key facilities and installations, it also operates as part of the international security efforts of the People's Republic of China, against both terrorism and organized crime. Mathieu Duchâtel for The National Bureau of Asian Research identifies the legal basis of the PAP missions abroad in Article 71 of the 2015 Counter-terrorism Law. According Armed Police Force University professor Zhou Jian, counterterrorism is a task provided by law for the People's Armed Police and operating missions abroad is an “irreplaceable means”.[30]^: 14–15

The People's Armed Police sent personnel abroad to receive training or provide training and participates in counter-terrorism exercises, especially across Central Asia in bilateral and multilateral agreements.[30]^: 65 [31]^: 26 [32] PAP special operations forces are also deployed in the Chinese embassies of Baghdad and Kabul for the purposes of protection of diplomatic staff and property.[30]^: 15

Since 2011, the People's Armed Police has also conducted operations along the Mekong river with the security forces of Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia. These operations are aimed against organized crime.[30]^: 13

Since 2014, the People's Republic of China established a security cooperation with Tajikistan and Afghanistan on Afghan border, near the Wakhan Corridor and in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region. The People's Armed Police is the main force for both bilateral and trilateral counterterrorism operations (mainly reconnaissance patrols in remote areas), being deployed south of Shaymak; the PAP has also conducted training for Tajik security forces.[30]^{: 13, 84–87}

The People's Armed Police Academy tasked with officer education and training for duties related to the missions entrusted to the People's Armed Police, including, since 2001, UN peacekeeping.[38] The People's Armed Police Academy is headquartered in Langfang, of Hebei. The People's Armed Police Academy started to recruit cadets in 1984; since 1997, it has begun to issue bachelor's degrees; in 2003 it was allowed to issue master's degrees. According to a 2019 source, it is subordinate to the Ministry of Public Security.[38] The PAP Academy is a Corps Leader Grade command, and thus it is led by a major general who serves as Superintendent.[23]^: 32[35] All graduates to the academy are commissioned into the PAP as Second Lieutenants (equivalent of Ensigns for those commissioned into the Coast Guard).

The People's Armed Police Logistics Academy is a training body aimed to train People's Armed Police personnel in handling logistics. According to Unit Tracker, the university include subjects as applied economics, military and paramilitary logistics, as well as engineering.[39] The Logistics Academy is a Corps Leader Grade command, and thus it is led by a major general.[23]^: 32[35]

The 1st Mobile Contingent is based in Shijiazhuang, Hebei, south of Beijing. The Contingent covers northern and central China, including Beijing.[40] The 1st Mobile Contingent consists of:[23]^: 14

• 9 mobile detachments (Panjin, Liaoning; Shenyang, Liaoning; Bayisingtu, Inner Mongolia; Tianjin; Dingzhou, Hebei; Baoding, Hebei; Puzhong, Shanxi; Zhengzhou, Henan; Pingliang, Gansu);
• 3 Special Operations detachments (Beijing; Tianjin; Shijiazhuang);
• 2 Transportation detachments (Beijing and Xi’an, Shaanxi);
• 1 Engineering/Chemical Defence detachment (Huludao, Liaoning);
• 1 Helicopter detachment (Puzhong, Shanxi).

The 2nd Mobile Contingent is headquartered in Fuzhou, with units concentrated in Fujian and surrounding provinces along the coast (covering eastern and southern China).[23]^: 13 The 2nd Mobile Contingent consists of:[23]^: 14

• 9 mobile detachments (Wuyi, Jiangsu; Putian, Fujian; Guangzhou; Foshan, Guangdong; Mengzi, Yunnan; Nanchong, Sichuan);
• 2 Special Operations detachments (Guangzhou and Huzhou, Zhejiang);
• 3 Transportation detachments (Hefei, Anhui; Mianyang, Sichuan; Linzhi, Tibet);
• 1 Engineering/Chemical Defense detachment (Fuzhou, Fujian);
• 1 Helicopter detachment (Chengdu, Sichuan).

The incumbent Commander is Major General Chen Hongwu, while the Political Commissar is Major General Yang Zhenguo.

Within each provincial level division, an IGC Contingent (Chinese: 总队; pinyin: Zǒngduì), a formation equivalent in rank to a PLA Division,[5]^: 116 is stationed, with the exception of Macau and Hong Kong.[21] The provincial command is deputy corps leader grade (Chinese: 副军级; pinyin: Fùjūnjí), with the exception of Xinjiang and Beijing Commands, which are senior in rank (Chinese: 正军级; pinyin: Zhèngjūnjí; lit. 'corps leader grade'). A provincial Contingent is deemed to be between 15,000 and 30,000 troops strong.[41]

The main tasks of the provincial commands are to undertake fixed target duty and urban armed patrol missions, to ensure the security of important national goals, as force multipliers during emergency situations, whether be natural or man made, to maintain national security and social stability, to support national economic construction and to carry out rescue and disaster relief missions in tandem with other organizations.

Each Contingent maintains a Staff, a Political Work Department and a Discipline Inspection Department. Beijing and Xinjiang Contingents maintain these departments at the Deputy Corps Leader Grade, while the other 30 Contingents maintain them at the Division Leader Grade.[23]^: 32 All provincial-level Contingents maintain "Duty Detachments" (Chinese: 执勤支队; pinyin: Zhíqín Zhīduì), which perform routine duties, including protecting government compounds, in order to be able to complement the Public Security apparatus in case of the latter's failure to handle riots and other forms of mass incidents.[23]^: 22

Alongside the territorial forces, units roughly equivalent to PLA ground force regiments/brigades, some of which formerly subordinated to the disbanded 14 mobile divisions and some already established within the provincial commands, have been renamed "Mobile Detachments" (Chinese: 机动支队; pinyin: Jīdòng Zhīduì).[15]^: 233 Several of these Mobile Detachments are assigned to the provincial-level commands, in order to provide local authorities of rapid reaction forces. 26 provincial-level subdivisions have 1 Mobile Detachment in addition to the provincial force; seven subdivisions instead have more than one:[23]^{: 12–13, 36}

• Xinjiang: 7 Mobile Detachments;
• Beijing: 4 Mobile Detachments;
• Sichuan: 4 Mobile Detachments;
• Yunnan: 3 Mobile Detachments;
• Tibet: 3 Mobile Detachments;
• Qinghai: 2 Mobile Detachments;
• Shanghai: 2 Mobile Detachments.

The IGC Contingents deployed at the provincial levels are further downsized to regiments/brigades, battalions and companies in battle order, which are stationed in a number of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the headquarters. All the contingents have elementary command colleges under them.[24]

A PAP Detachment (Chinese: 支队; pinyin: Zhīduì, equivalent to a PLA regiment/brigade) is stationed at the prefectural level, a public security battalion (Chinese: 大队; pinyin: Dàduì, equivalent to a PLA battalion) at the county level, and a public security company (Chinese: 中队; pinyin: Zhōngduì, equivalent to a PLA company) at the township level.[15]^: 234[23]^: 7

Special Police Units are organized and placed at the Provincial level and at national level.[41]

The national-level Special Police Unit is the People's Armed Police Special Police Academy, reporting to the People's Armed Police Headquarters. The academy has both educational and operational roles. On one hand, it is tasked to provide courses in special reconnaissance and special police operations; on the other hand, it has to carry out counter terrorism missions, riot control, anti-hijacking and bomb disposal. The main operational unit of the People's Armed Police Special Police Academy is the Falcon Unit.[41] In addition, the 1st and 2nd Mobile Contingents maintain a total of 5 Special Operations Detachments.[23]^: 12–13

Each provincial-level Contingent (Chinese: 总队; pinyin: Zǒngduì) establishes and maintains special police units as part of its own territorial organization.[41] As of 2019, there are three known special police units within the People's Armed Police:[43][44]

• Falcon Commando Unit: Beijing;
• Snow Leopard Commando Unit: Guangzhou;
• Mountain Eagle Commando Unit: Xinjiang.

For what regards Special Operations detachments of the Mobile Contingents, some of the specialized units may have drawn from the provincial Contingents.[23]^: 36

• Harbin Z-20

Officers

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
PSF-PLA (1955-1965)
	General 大将		Colonel general 上将		Lieutenant general 中将		Major general 少将		Colonel commandant 大校		Colonel 上校		Lieutenant colonel 中校		Major 少校		Captain 大尉		Senior lieutenant 上尉			First lieutenant 中尉			Second lieutenant 少尉			Warrant officer 准尉
Collar insignia (adopted 1958)

Non-commissioned officers and enlisted

	Non-Commissioned Officers												Enlisted personnel
People's Armed Police (1955-1965)
	Staff Sergeant (上士)						Sergeant (中士)				Corporal (下士)		Private 1st class (上等兵)						Private (列兵)

Officers

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
People's Armed Police (1988-1994)
	General 大将		Colonel general 上将		Lieutenant general 中将		Major general 少将		Colonel commandant 大校		Colonel 上校		Lieutenant colonel 中校		Major 少校		Captain 大尉		First lieutenant 中尉			Second lieutenant 少尉			Officer cadet 学员

Non-commissioned officers and enlisted

	Non-Commissioned Officers																				Enlisted personnel
People's Armed Police (1988-1994)
	Sergeant major (一级军士长)						Master sergeant (二级军士长)		Staff Sergeant (上士)						Sergeant (中士)				Corporal (下士)		Private 1st class (上等兵)						Private (列兵)