One nation under CCTV: Beijing police claim every corner of city is on camera

Beijing is a city where you might want to watch what you get up to after police claim they have every corner of the city covered by CCTV. The Beijing Public Security Bureau has upped high-level surveillance by 29% year-on-year in an effort to tighten security in the capital.

The city-wide monitoring, named Project Sky Eye, has been brought into effect for the National Day public holiday, a celebration of the founding of the People's Republic of China, where streets are crammed with tens of thousands of people. It is during this crowding that crime can often occur but this year, the Beijing police aim to use the cameras as an act of prevention and tool to find suspects.

They also serve to monitor markets, bus stations and parks and since the beginning of 2015, the CCTV system has helped solve more than 1,500 cases – up 22% from 2014, while criminal cases have reportedly dropped 27%.

It is estimated there are around 387,000 CCTV cameras placed around the city as well as further cameras fixed on to taxis and mobile surveillance vehicles. To backup the Beijing Police claims of CCTV covering every street corner, they have released a map with a red dot representing each camera.

While the reported crime statistics show the CN¥528m (£54m, $82.7m) project may have paid off many of the public are wary that the CCTV offers more oppression than protection and act as a means to control the population.