Asanali, a young Uygur from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, has become well known in Guangzhou, the Guangdong provincial capital, since local media published stories about him.

The coordinator of chengguan (public order monitors) from the Jinhua neighborhood committee, Liwan district, has helped government agencies clean up the bustling Chen Clan Academy square, a must-see Guangzhou tourist site. The square used to be messy and chaotic because of the many ethnic minority street vendors in past years.

Every day, Asanali approaches the street hawkers, smiles, shake their hands and then politely reminds them to observe the civil order regulations.