當前中國的社會不平等及集體抗議

Social Inequality and Collective Protest in Contemporary China

There are essentially two significant features of social inequality in contemporary China. The first is the disparate income distribution that creates ever increasing income gaps, and the second comprises the collusive socio-economic relations between bureaucratic officials and the emergent social elites. A combination of these features makes for a situation where the bureaucrats and social elites glean a disproportionate share of the economy. This effectively disfranchises and alienates the workers and peasants from the development process. State officials and social elites maintain and perpetuate their dominance and vested interests by upholding and promoting the notion of stability. This strategy has far-reaching and deleterious consequences for the bargaining process and collective action of the workers and peasants. On the other hand, it leads to a rather fragile operating infrastructure for the regime even if it appears that the state maintains effective socio-political control. China will as a result be faced with the incompetence of civil society and its attendant consequences. This will have a serious and harmful effect on political reforms and social solidarity in the long run.