A discussion of the direction and nature of police law reform compares Arrest Regulations promulgated in 1954 with those adopted in 1979. The main purposes of Arrest Regulations in 1954 were to secure the communist revolution and attack those who sought to undermine the revolution. The 1954 Arrest Regulations were abandoned during the Lin Biao and "gang of four" period when the criminal justice system was completely destroyed. The Arrest Regulations of 1979 replaced those of 1954 and were intended to correct the mistakes of the lawless years (1966-76); the police were provided with law intended to fight crime and maintain order under the mandates and limitations imposed on the police by the People's Republic of China's constitution. All arrests must be justified by law, which requires that they be supported by facts, required by law, necessitated by the situation, and sanctioned by an independent authority. The Police Law of 1995 was promulgated to institutionalize the organizational structure of the police, standardize operational procedures, and legalize the enforcement authority of public security agencies under an evolving and increasingly sophisticated socialist legal system. The ultimate objective of the new Police Law is to achieve the Chinese Communist Party's goal of governing the police by law, with a view toward developing a competent, qualified, effective, efficient, and accountable police force. Specific measures to provide legal supervision of police since the enactment of the Police Law include NPC (National People's Congress) supervision of the police and government authority for the news media to conduct investigations of government waste, corruption, and abuse. 6 notes and 43 references