chaneyt Posted August 4, 2009 at 01:05 PM Report Posted August 4, 2009 at 01:05 PM i registered with the local PSB after i got here (about a month ago), and an officer came up to check on my apartment. i had already told him that i was leaving in mid-august when i registered, but last week he phoned me to ask me again. tonight at 8:30pm i get a knock on my door... and it's that officer again. i lied to him and told him i was sleeping and asked him what's up. he said he was just checking on me. has this happened to anybody else?? is there anything i can do to stop these random visits?? i've got a feeling he'll be returning again before i leave this place... Quote
anonymoose Posted August 4, 2009 at 02:15 PM Report Posted August 4, 2009 at 02:15 PM If you've got nothing to hide, just let him have a look and then he'll go again. It happened to me in Dalian once, though never in Shanghai. Quote
muyongshi Posted August 4, 2009 at 02:16 PM Report Posted August 4, 2009 at 02:16 PM Where do you live? Couple possibilities: he is trying to make friends with you or it's a tighter security place and he needs to be checking up on you just to make sure you're not doing anything illegal. Quote
chaneyt Posted August 5, 2009 at 12:57 AM Author Report Posted August 5, 2009 at 12:57 AM i live in hohhot, inner mongolia... don't think there are any real security issues around here. well i've told them i'm living on my own but my boyfriend was around last night and so i decided it'd be better to lie than to answer the 100s of questions he'd undoubtedly come up with afterwards. besides it seems a bit strange for a middle-aged male police officer to pay a visit to a young female foreigner at night without any prior notice or reason. Quote
dalaowai Posted August 5, 2009 at 01:08 AM Report Posted August 5, 2009 at 01:08 AM As a rule of thumb, wherever I live (Canada or China), if I'm not expecting anyone to visit, if someone knocks at the door, I don't answer. Quote
chaneyt Posted August 5, 2009 at 01:29 AM Author Report Posted August 5, 2009 at 01:29 AM yeah i think i'll do that from now on thanks everyone Quote
roddy Posted August 5, 2009 at 03:12 AM Report Posted August 5, 2009 at 03:12 AM Could be any number of reasons, not necessarily anything to do with you. Orders could have come down from the city to keep a closer eye on foreigners for some reason, some other foreigner living nearby might have caused some kind of issue so they're a bit jumpy, you could just be on his way home. It's also not impossible that (assuming your boyfriend is also foreign) the building management noticed an extra foreigner coming and going and let the police now, so they want to see how many people are actually living there. He might have just got bored sitting around the station drinking tea. When they do pay their little 'just checking to see everything's ok' visits it's not unusual to come in the evening - that's when people are home. You're probably more likely to get one if you're living somewhere they don't expect foreigners to live, are doing something a bit 'odd' - long term stay on a tourist visa, perhaps - or around sensitive times / anniversaries. Quote
woliveri Posted August 5, 2009 at 09:27 PM Report Posted August 5, 2009 at 09:27 PM Well, there was one visit from an officer to my apartment when my wife was there. He questioned me and she translated for us... All fine.. Then he turned to her and started questioning her, implying things about our age difference, relationship, why she was hooking up with a foreigner, etc and asked to see her ID Info and she went Ballistic on this guy.. They were both yelling at each other in a very heated argument even as the guy was leaving they were both arguing. After that I saw the guy on the way to the park a couple of times... I just talked to him for a few minutes and played "simpleton" and that was it... Nothing ever came of it again. Quote
在中国消失 Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:09 AM Report Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:09 AM doing something a bit 'odd' - long term stay on a tourist visa, perhaps-Obtaining a 1-year multiple entry Tourist (L) visa is proving to be an easy task these days.That said, do you foresee any problems for someone that wishes to stay in China for 1 year as a tourist? How about 2 or 3 years? (Assuming that they will be staying in the same apartment etc.) Thanks. 在中国消失 Quote
roddy Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:22 AM Report Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:22 AM If you happened to have a suspicious local PSB, they may wonder what you're up to - ie, are you working. But the local PSB aren't really in charge of foreigners working illegally, so . . . Quote
在中国消失 Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:41 AM Report Posted August 17, 2009 at 10:41 AM Thanks for the information, roddy. I wouldn't necessarily have to do any work while living in China. However, if I chose to do any work, it would very difficult for the PSB to prove it - as I can do all of my work in the privacy of my apartment with a computer/laptop. Thanks again. 在中国消失 Quote
chaneyt Posted August 17, 2009 at 04:17 PM Author Report Posted August 17, 2009 at 04:17 PM i've gone home now but had i stayed there long term i think i would have moved to a place which was covered by a different PSB. it's annoying having an officer nose around your apartment whenever they feel a bit bored. Quote
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