At 3 PM on October 17, Cheng Minzhang was given the 9 millionth second generation ID card and an honorary certificate by Ma Zhenchuan, member of Beijing's CPC standing committee and director of the city's public security bureau. Cheng is Shenzhou VI's vice commander in chief and senior engineer at China Aerospace Science Corp's Space Technology Research Institute.

In the meantime Ma said the first phase of the new cards' issue in Beijing was now complete.

As 90 percent of the capital's citizens were issued new cards between April of last year and October 17, ten months ahead of schedule, Beijing Public Security Bureau was awarded 500,000 yuan by the Ministry of Public Security.

About 17,000 police, one third of the city's force, spent more than 240,000 working days on the initiative. While going door-to-door they solved 7,266 unrelated cases, involving the arrest of 6,899 suspects.

There are still about 900,000 citizens who have not replaced their old ID cards. The police aim to issue new cards for older and disabled people, who were not required to obtain them themselves, before the end of this year.

Many people registered at permanent addresses in Beijing's Tongzhou District, a suburban area, actually live near or at their places of work elsewhere in the city, so police there have extended the initial issue of new cards to the end of October.

The police reminded citizens who have not acquired new ID cards that, though they can still apply, they will have to wait longer to get them because temporary fast track channels will be closed soon.

(China.org.cn by Wang Ke October 19, 2005)