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Numbers About China's Social Inequality Don't Add Up

Official data widely seen as attempt to hide growing potential for social unrest

By He Qinglian Created: January 31, 2013Last Updated: January 31, 2013

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/opinion/numbers-about-chinas-social-inequality-dont-add-up-342371.html

China's National Bureau of Statistics recently published Gini coefficients for 2003 through 2012 after a decade of silence on this topic. The data shows the coefficient peaked in 2008 at 0.491 but has gradually dropped since then. According to the official statistics, in 2012 it stood at 0.474.

However, the numbers have been widely questioned. Most college-educated Chinese know that the Gini coefficient is an index measuring inequality, and a Gini coefficient of 0.4 and above may lead to social unrest.

Doubt Over Government's Credibility