Fu Zhenghua, director of the Beijing public security bureau, unveils the name card of the new public relations office on Tuesday. [Zou Hong / China Daily]

Netizens will be able to communicate with the Beijing police through microblogs in the near future, with the founding of the Beijing police's first public relations branch.

The public relations branch, officially established on Tuesday, is part of the Beijing police's plan to better their relationship with residents.

Fu Zhenghua, director of the bureau, said at a press conference that the police are facing more challenges and pressure when trying to influence public opinion on police-related news.

Beijing has a population of 20 million residents, 10 million of which are Internet users.

"With the help of modern technology, we can communicate and exchange information with people, which will help us build a good image and win support and trust from the public," Fu said.

In addition to regular press releases, the branch will launch blogs and microblogs in order to better understand the opinions of Internet users.

The branch will also try various methods to win the public over, including face-to-face interaction with netizens and advertising movies.

A more open attitude is another key to maintaining a healthy relationship with the public, according to Fu. The bureau is considering setting up an open day, offering people a chance to understand the life of police officers.

According to Mirror Evening News, the decision to open a public relations branch was based on the experience of similar organizations all over China. All district-level public security bureaus in Beijing will have their own public relations branches by the end of July.

The new branch will deal with all the people needing help from police, including citizens with Beijing hukou (permanent residency), migrant workers and expatriates.