South China's booming city Shenzhen has introduced video link-up technology that allows victims of crime to communicate face-to-face with police officers.

Two video annunciators -- electronic devices with built-in cameras linked to police monitoring centers -- have been installed on Dongmen Street, a pedestrianized area, China Daily reported Tuesday.

The annunciators are aimed at boosting the confidence of local residents and helping police pinpoint the exact location of a crime, it said.

"If people are robbed and are near a video annunciator, they can press a button on it, which connects them to the monitoring center and allows them to communicate," a police officer on duty at Dongmen Street was quoted as saying.

By learning of the exact location of the theft or robbery, the monitoring center can search the area for suspects as the whole commercial center is under the surveillance of a number of electronic monitors.

The move is part of the city's crackdown on crime, which will also see 200,000 surveillance cameras installed in the city by theend of this year.

Six other video annunciators were put in place two years ago in another commercial center at the main crossroads at North HuaqiangRoad, and has been used by more than 200 people who were either incritical situations or needed help in tracing lost children.

Thanks to the crackdown efforts, the number of criminal cases in the area dropped from more than 300 a month in 2002 to 44 a month last year, China Daily said, quoting local police statistics.

Editor: Yan