Yang Hai, a former policeman, be-ieves China's entry into the World Trade Organisation will do wonders for his private detective agency. More foreigners doing business with China will mean more demand for a host of services that China's law enforcement agencies usually will not provide, among them background checks on prospective business partners, and investigations of insurance claims and trademark theft. But despite being a member of the World Association of Detectives (as a certificate displayed in his office declares), Mr Yang is anxious to avoid the use of the word "detective" in connection with his business. A government directive issued in 1993, though patchily enforced, bans any "private detective agency-like non-governmental organisation". In China, only the state has the power to investigate criminal activity. Instead, Mr Yang runs what he cautiously calls an "investigation service" for foreign and Chinese businesses. Chinese who buy life insurance in America, then make fraudulent claims on their return to China, are among the targets of his inquiries.
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