杨连明

Abstract By giving an account of his experience of security work in Shanghai Museum， the author focused on the reinforcement of the security management system， among which the sense of duty of the security personnel should be highlighted. Only by insisting on this task， can the safety of a museum be ensured.

Keywords Shanghai Museum， security service， to ensure safety by means of guards

0 Introduction

The author， with rich experience in security service， particularly working in Shanghai Museum， expounds on the importance of highlighting the sense of duty of the security personnel while reinforcing the security management system in the museum in order to ensure the safety of the collections of the museum as well as visitors. The security of museums， which are regarded as important public cultural institutions， is part of the general public security， thus having vital social implication.

1 The importance of security service in museums

The nature of museums is defined in the statutes of ICOM passed by the 22nd general conference held in 2007： A museum is a non-profit and permanent institution in the service of society and its development， open to the public， which acquires， conserves， researches， communicates and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education， study and enjoyment. The Museum Ordinance of China promulgated in 2015 also has the definition that a museum is a non-profit institution， approved by the registration authority， which acquires， conserves and exhibits tangible heritage of humanity and nature for the purposes of education， study and enjoyment. The public cultural mission of museums is plainly expressed in the formal documents. As an institution of collecting the cultural heritage of humanity， museums are responsible for the continuation of the history and culture of a nation； as an institution for study， museums are responsible for discovering and developing cultural values in the collections， telling Chinese stories and popularizing socialist culture. The ultimate objectives of various missions of museums are related to social education and public service so they are naturally responsible for popularizing and carrying forward culture as well as inspiring the innovation spirits of the general public in terms of culture.

Since the reform and opening up initiated from 1980s， the museums in China have become popular public cultural venues. More and more people give priority to visiting museums. As museums become an important part of socialist scientific and cultural causes， security service is one of the vital tasks that ensure their missions.

Shanghai Museum， with which the author works， is one of the most prestigious museums in China with a rich collection of ancient Chinese antiques. It has around one million collections， among which precious antiques are over 140 000 and some of the valuable ancient Chinese bronzes， ceramics， paintings and works of calligraphy enjoy great fame throughout the world. The museum has 10 groups of special collections on routine displays and about 5 special display programs every year. It organizes many related public activities concerning social education， including over 200 academic lectures， which are open to the public， offered annually. The exhibits and programs help visitors and audiences from home and abroad acquire knowledge of Chinese history， culture and art.

Shanghai Museum is situated within the famous People Square， which is located in the center of the city， around which are the Shanghai Concert Hall， the Shanghai Grand Theatre， the Shanghai City Planning Museum and the municipal government， thus naturally being the center of the city in terms of both politics and culture as well as a famous place of interest. This area is also a vital hub of the local public transportation， around which there are lots of bus stops and a big subway station. For various reasons， including those mentioned above， the museum has attracted about 2 000 000 visitors annually， among whom are around 400 000 young visitors from the local primary and middle schools and other parts of the country， since it adopted the free admission policy in 2008. Thats why the museum has attached great importance to its security service.

The security service， in general， involves the safety of collections， visitors as well as all the equipment and facilities in a museum. Any negligence of the work may lead to fatal result； therefore， no museum can afford to neglect its security service. As a worldly-known museum， Shanghai Museum cannot afford to tolerate any fatal errors concerning its security.

2 Laying stress on the sense of duty of the security personnel

2.1 The reinforcement of security management system

Through elaborate efforts in the past years， Shanghai Museum has established a perfect comprehensive security management system featured by means of guards， traditional equipment and sophisticated electronic facilities， which can ensure the safety of the collections and visitors. In addition， the security department of the museum has been abiding by a principle： insisting on precaution first； laying stress on vital risks. That is， apart from the comprehensive prevention system and the elaborate preventive measures， stress should be put on the vital places and periods of time.

With the development of technology， more and more advanced and helpful equipment and electronic facilities are used for the purpose of security and thus become inevitable tools. However， the sense of duty of the security personnel should still be put first. The video surveillance system that monitors every corner of the museum around the clock must be operated and watched by the guards on duty. If they are absent-minded at work， the sophisticated facilities cannot stop any fatal trouble themselves. Take the fatal error taking place in Dunhuang Museum on October 24th，2008 for example. During opening time， some exhibits of the museum were stolen because the guards on duty， who were hired as temporary workers， lacked the sense of duty and were often absent from their guarding positions. Their negligence of duty gave a good chance to the criminals.

Since free admission was initiated in Shanghai Museum， the annual quantity of visitors has doubled， rising about from 10 000 000 to 20 000 000. Along with the rise of the quantity of visitors， more and more rude behaviors of visitors have been found， such as those spoiling the sanitary environment of the exhibit halls and even actions endangering some of the exhibits. If the guards on duty in the exhibit halls that are often crowded with visitors， thus possibly having hidden troubles or dangers， lack the sense of duty， the security management system cannot ensure the safety of the museum alone. Therefore， the safety of the museum calls for the conscientious and responsible attitude and involvement of all the security personnel and even other staff members. Only with the strong sense of duty can the guards on duty stop or tackle any serious trouble or danger the moment it is found.

2.2 Reinforcing the duty of each position

The security management system is a part of the general administrative system of the museum. The leaders of the museum are fully aware that reinforcing the duty of each security position is more important than establishing the security management system.

The security department has not only the basic security management systems or regulations， such as the fire prevention regulations， the gate-keeping system， the system of chief on duty and various principles for emergencies， formulated in accordance with the related state laws and regulations， but also the necessary measures to tackle any trouble or hazard that may endanger the collections or exhibit halls. For instance， according to the system of chief on duty， all the leaders from the top level to the middle level of the museum ought to act as the chief on duty on night shifts or during weekends and important holidays， especially during the periods of sensitive time when more leaders may join in the general watch duty， so as to deal with any serious emergency efficiently. Besides， in order to solve problems or troubles different from common ones， the security management regulations or measures should be subject to modification accordingly so that the guards or staff members facing the uncommon troubles can adopt proper and effective measures.

The establishment of the security team in terms of quantity is a basic task. According to The Ordinance of the Security System of Museums jointly promulgated by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Public Security in 1985， “The quantity of the cadres and guards， including the patrolmen and the technicians in charge of the equipment for the purpose of security， should account for ten percent of the general staff of a museum.” Shanghai Museum has met the requirement now. Moreover， in line with the ordinance， the security personnel， including cadres and guards， should be qualified for their positions in terms of political consciousness and professional competence.

The museum has been attaching importance to the quality of the security team. First， the team is required to have a strong sense of duty for the safety of the collections of the museum. Second， during the orientation period， every member of the team ought to receive professional training， particularly remembering the regulations concerning work details and the exact time on duty as well as the methods of operating the monitoring and warning appliances. Third， the guards performing the tasks of patrol or fire prevention have to pass the physical fitness test.

In order to reinforce the security management system， the museum has established the responsibility contract system. Every two years， a new responsibility contract is signed by a leader of the museum and the leader of the security department so that the responsibility of leadership is not subject to the change of any leader or arrangement of the security work. What responsibility should the leader of the museum in charge of the security service or the leader of the security department， or even the guards on duty take is plainly stipulated in the contract. Through this measure， the responsibility of the relevant leaders is enhanced and the requirements of inspection for the security service are known by all the staff.

And a special system of award and punishment concerning the security service is established， as well， so as to enhance the security consciousness of all the staff. Those who take an active part in or make special contributions to the security service， including the guards who are in charge of the safety of special positions and successfully fulfill their missions， will be awarded. Those who make serious errors due to negligence of duty will be given a disciplinary warning or financially punished， or even given further penalty by strengthening accountability if the error is fatal.

3 Enhancing the security awareness of all the staff

The security team is， in terms of quantity， still limited so it is difficult for them to tackle some serious large-scale troubles or accidents as well as find all the hidden perils by themselves. Thats why the security department keeps focusing on the education of security awareness of all the staff in order to make it absorbed into their blood， thus making every member of the staff become a guard intuitively， who are more helpful than the sophisticated monitoring appliances. This scheme is designed as the basic one that ensures both the safety and the harmony of the museum. For this purpose， the following three measures have been taken.

3.1 Enhancing fire prevention awareness

Fire prevention has been an important part of the security service in the museum. Fire accidents may happen in museums nearly every year throughout the world， which may lead to the ruin of valuable collections. The fire accident taking place in the Motorbikes Museum of Britain in 2003 spoiled 650 among the 900 precious motorbikes obtained from the whole world. A fire taking place in Jan. 2006 destroyed the Ernest Hemingway Museum and the Compleat Angler bar on the Bahamian Island of Bimini. In July 2009， an imitation ancient ship of the Maritime Museum in Den Helder， Holland， was ruined by a fire. These serious lessons ought to be learned by museums across the world.

Yet fire disasters can be prevented. In my opinion， apart from the professional systems and measures， stress should be laid on the fire prevention awareness of all the staff of a museum， making them become an invisible protective wall against fires. Newcomers of museums， in particular， ought to have not only knowledge about their work but also a strong sense of duty. Museums， which are established for the purposes of study， conservation and exhibition， have special collections that are regarded as nonrenewable resources. This nature of museums makes it a sort of institutions that deserve special concern about their security service. Thats why the orientation program for newcomers of museums should include specific education and training concerning the protection of collections and themselves. So the newcomers of our museum must receive the education concerning the protection of collections and the prevention of fires， during which they must take a test about security service， as well as a training in the use of fire extinguishers.

The security department adopts various methods and opportunities to carry out its security education programs. It uses bulletin boards and videos to popularize the knowledge and necessary skills concerning fire prevention and show some fire disasters with comments on them. It suggests that the drill of using fire extinguishers be added to the sports meeting of the museum. The National Fire Day that falls on November 9 is also a chance that the department takes to implement the security propaganda scheme that involves both knowledge and drills related to fire prevention. These measures have achieved desired effects.

As for the security personnel， they are required to update their professional skills and study the relevant laws and regulations made by both the museum and the state. They are also expected to help other staff members to update their knowledge and skills concerning security service.

The security alarm bell keeps ringing in the museum. The security department adopts different measures to offer the professional education and training according to different periods of time， tasks or problems to other staff members to make them remain concerned about the security service of the museum.

3.2 Bringing the use of electricity under effective control

Improper use of electricity may lead to fatal results in the museum， where there are too many paper materials. The fire disaster spoiling a famous palace in Mount Wudang in 2003 was caused by the improper use of an electric lamp in a martial art school next to it. According to the security regulations， the staff members of the museum are not allowed to use any electrical appliances forbidden by the museum and required to turn off all the electrical appliances in their offices. The staff members also participate in the safety inspection in the museum， inspecting not only other offices but also their own. Since this measure was taken， improper use of electricity has never been found.

3.3 Making self-check a rule

Although the museum has a perfect security management system， any carelessness of the staff may lead to serious result. Thats why every staff member is supposed to check the safety of his or her office before leaving.

As the museum is easy of access and is situated in an area where transportation is convenient， it tends to be subject to thefts or burglaries， thus suffering from losses of properties or exhibits. Therefore， the staff members are expected to see to it that the windows and doors are safely shut before they leave their offices. After the routine work time， the guards or patrolmen on duty will inspect all the offices and leave inspection records after making sure that every office is safe. The self-check rule is part of the security management system and is embodied in the security education.

The measures mentioned above help enhance the security awareness of the staff and develop good habits of their self-check and taking an active part in security inspection. Now， all of them turn off the electrical appliances intuitively before leaving their offices.

4 Conclusion

“Security comes from everyones effort.” Only when every staff member of the museum has a strong sense of duty， can its security be guaranteed， thus making contributions to the strive of establishing a peaceful and harmonious socialist society. Our efforts of focusing on the education and training related to security service have proven successful. In Shanghai Museum， the principle of giving priority to security has been stuck to in every task and every office so that the museum can enjoy a safe and peaceful environment， which ensures various missions of the museum to go on smoothly.

References

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[2]SU Jin. The composition and establishment of longitudinal-depth protection system in museums' security system[J]. Southeast Culture， 2016（S1）： 71-75.