Night scene in Beijing (file photo)

“How safe is China?” is a question posted on a U.S. social networking site in 2015. This is also a question that most Chinese people have not seriously thought about before. Yet it has attracted hundreds of netizens’ attention worldwide and brought about a heated discussion online recently.

Christopher Oliva, who has been living in China since 2008, answered the question “How safe is China” online and said: “This (China) is probably the country where I feel the safest.”

27-year-old African-American Matthew Bell mentioned in his answer that comparing to other countries in the world, China is “much more peaceful” and has no gun violence. Lom Harshni, a female writer and published author living in China for 14 years, said that she has never been teased on the street and believed that “China has to be one of the safest countries in the world today”. And Lecturer Farzan Safavi highly praised China’s work on keeping the most populous country so safe, saying “it’s truly a work of art”.

Many cities in China are pretty crowded, but you can still feel safe and composed and find Chinese people there are hospitable and kind. You do not have to worry about being robbed when walking down the street in the middle of the night or when having Chinese kebab with your friends on the street trying to enjoy the night. It is not bragging; it’s the reality of how people live in China. So, friends, welcome to China, and you will be surprised to find how safe the country is.

(This commentary is from the editorial board of the People's Daily)