Two cars are involved in a minor fender-bender. The drivers quickly jump from their vehicles to scream at and push each other.

A crowd quickly gathers and the police arrive to calm the situation.

Officers are cursed at, spat upon and pushed around, they say.

Three years after a special protection office was set up in the city to safeguard officers from abuse and assault, police still face violence and mistreatment on the job.

During the past three year, local policemen have reported 8,818 cases of assault at the job, ranging from verbal abuse to violent attacks that have caused three deaths - two this year - and 1,482 injuries, according to Shanghai Public Security Bureau spokesman Zhao Jinyi.

"At least physical attacks don't happen every day. Verbal abuse is what we have to face almost every day," said Sun Jiahua, a 46-year-old policeman in Putuo District.

"It is a minor offense so no punishment can be imposed. However, it does hurt us seriously, sometimes even worse than the physical attacks."

Two years ago, Sun and a colleague were attacked by nine suspects in a drug case. He ended up with a broken nose, bruised head and torn uniform.

His assailant was later ordered to pay Sun 1,450 yuan (US$175) in compensation.

"Our rules don't allow cops to fight back against attackers unless they are suspects in a criminal case," said Zhang Shiqi, vice director of the city's protection office.

"If there is no such department for cops to raise their complaints, our officers will feel chagrined and lose their motivation to fulfill their mission," he said.

Since the office was set up, 3,161 people have been punished for abusing police and it has helped 25 officers file civil lawsuit against assailants.

"Traffic police and community police are the main targets to be attacked be-cause their work brings them in contact with a large group of people," Zhang said.

"Attacking police, no matter verbally or physically, was rare in the past, I mean in the 1980s or early 1990s," said Shen Zhuquan, a retired officer who spent 40 years on the job.

Shen said most people who attack cops are those from other provinces, of bad temper or drunk.

Police say they are improving training to help officers deal with violent situations.

"Many cases occurred because our cops lack vigilance, so we are now organizing experience exchanges on how to defend against various circumstance," said Zhang.

(eastday.com July 21, 2003)