KEY POINTS:
BEIJING - Chinese police must be more polite, more efficient and better dressed in the run-up to next year's Beijing Olympics or they will be punished, state media said.
It is part of a Ministry of Public Security campaign to improve service as China begins the one-year countdown to the Games, which open on August 8 next year, the official Xinhua news agency said.
"Police who smoke, chew food, chat or use chilly words in front of the public will be immediately punished by inspectors on the spot. The inspection team will find out whether the police can take proper, immediate and effective actions when the public, especially foreigners, ask for help," it added.
"The inspection mainly deals with police who take a bad attitude towards the public and do not wear standard uniforms and insignia," Xinhua said.
Food stalls attached to Beijing's public toilets will be removed in good time for next year's Olympics and billboards near toilets will also be banned.
"It is not proper to sell soft drinks or snacks right at the toilets," the Beijing News said.
