The Effects of The Political and Economical Conditions of A Country Towards The Social Well Being of Its People - A Case Study of China

• THE EFFECTS OF THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMICAL CONDITIONS OF A COUNTRY TOWARDS THE SOCIAL WELL BEING OF ITS PEOPLE
Preface
I would like to start with a word of thanks for the people who have made it
possible to write this review. Firstly I would like to thank Assoc. Prof. DR. Hjh.
Hafazah Abdul Karim for getting me in touch with useful contacts and giving me
suggestions and advices during the writing-process. I’m also would like to say
thanks to my entire friends that have taught me during writing this assignment.
Anwar Suran
th
26 June 2014
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UDM 751: SOCIAL DYNAMIC AND URBAN CONFLICT
Table of Content
Preface 1
1.1 China Overview 3
2.1 What is Social Indicators? 20
2.2 Subjective and Objective Social Indicators 21
2.3 Functions of Social Indicators 23
2.4 Framework of Social Indicators 23
2.5 What is Social Well-Being? 24
2.6 What is “Observable Indicators” Assess that Contribute to the
Well-Being of The People in China? 25
3.1 The Life Context in China 33
3.2 China Gross National Happiness Index (GNH) 51
4.1 The Marginalized Ethnic Groups in China 54
4.2 Comparing Ethnic Minority and Han Chinese in China 58
5.1 The Main Causes of Lack of Well-Being for Uighur Ethnic in Xinjiang 61
6.1 Do these Issues and Problems Stand Alone or Interrelated? 67
7.1 Does it Seem Possible for Uyghur Ethnic in Xinjiang to be Happy? 68
8.1 The Main Determinant of Stability for a Country to Ensure the
Well-Being of its Citizens 76
8.2 Pro-Poor Development and Building Capacity in China 77
8.3 Public Participation Among Ethnic Minorities in China 82
8.4 The Major Targets and Policies for Economic and Social
Development in 2014 84
9.1 Recommendation 86
10.1 Conclusion 88
List of References 89
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INTRODUCTION
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1.1 China Overview
Capital City Beijing

Largest City Shanghai
Official Language Standard Chinese
Major Ethnic Groups Han (91.51%)
Government Single-Party Socialist State
Legislature National People Congress
Land Area 9,596,960 square kilometres
Estimated Population 1.351 billion (2012) World Bank
Urban population 50.6% (18% in 1978)
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) 8.227 trillion USD (2012) World Bank
Religion No Religious Affiliation (59%)
Taoism and Confucianism (20%)
Atheist (12%)
Buddhist (6%)
Muslim (2%)
Christian (1%)
Table 1.1: Overview of China
Area controlled by the People's Republic of People's Republic of China Flag

China shown in dark green
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a sovereign state located in East
Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population of over 1.35 billion. The
PRC is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party, with its seat of
government in the capital city of Beijing (Walton, 2001). It exercises jurisdiction over 22
provinces, five autonomous regions, four direct-controlled municipalities (Beijing,
Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), and two mostly self-governing special administrative
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regions (Hong Kong and Macau). The PRC also claims Taiwan – which is controlled by the
Republic of China (ROC), a separate political entity – as its 23rd province, a claim which
is controversial due to the complex political status of Taiwan.
Covering approximately 9.6 million square kilometers, China is the world's second-
largest country by land area, and either the third or fourth-largest by total area,
depending on the method of measurement. China's landscape is vast and diverse,
ranging from forest steppes and the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts in the arid north to
subtropical forests in the wetter south. The Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan
mountain ranges separate China from South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow
Rivers, the third- and sixth-longest in the world, run from the Tibetan Plateau to the
densely populated eastern seaboard. China's coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500
kilometres (9,000 mi) long, and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East and South China
Seas.
The People's Republic of China has administrative

control over 22 provinces
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The economic history of China stretches over thousands of years and has undergone
alternating cycles of prosperity and decline. China was for a large part of the last two
millennia the world's largest and most advanced economy (Dahlman, 2014). Since the
introduction of economic reforms in 1978, China has become one of the world's fastest-
growing major economies. As of 2013, it is the world's second-largest economy by both
nominal total GDP and purchasing power parity (PPP), and is also the world's largest
exporter and importer of goods (Garry, 2014). China is a recognized nuclear weapons
state and has the world's largest standing army, with the second-largest defence
budget. The PRC has been a United Nations member since 1971, when it replaced the
ROC as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. China is also a member of
numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC,
BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, the BCIM and the G-20. China is a
regional power within Asia and has been characterized as a potential superpower by a
number of commentators.
1.1.2 History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River
and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the
cradle of Chinese civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is
one of the world's oldest civilizations (BBC News, 2014). The written history of China can
be found as early as the Shang dynasty (c. 1700–1046 BC), although ancient historical
texts such as the Records of the Grand Historian (ca. 100 BC) and Bamboo Annals assert
the existence of a Xia dynasty before the Shang. Much of Chinese culture, literature and
philosophy further developed during the Zhou dynasty (1045–256 BC).
The Zhou dynasty began to bow to external and internal pressures in the 8th century BC,
and the kingdom eventually broke apart into smaller states, beginning in the Spring and
Autumn period and reaching full expression in the Warring States period. This is one of
multiple periods of failed statehood in Chinese history (the most recent of which was
the Chinese Civil War).
In between eras of multiple kingdoms and warlordism, Chinese dynasties have ruled
parts or all of China; in some eras, including the present, control has stretched as far as
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Xinjiang and/or Tibet. This practice began with the Qin dynasty: in 221 BC, Qin Shi
Huang united the various warring kingdoms and created the first Chinese empire.
Successive dynasties in Chinese history developed bureaucratic systems that enabled
the Emperor of China to directly control vast territories. China's last dynasty was Qing,
which was replaced by the Republic of China in 1912, and in the mainland by the
People's Republic of China in 1949.
The conventional view of Chinese history is that of alternating periods of political unity
and disunity, with China occasionally being dominated by steppe peoples, most of
whom were in turn assimilated into the Han Chinese population. Cultural and political
influences from other parts of Asia and the Western world, carried by successive waves
of immigration, expansion, foreign contact, and cultural assimilation are part of the
modern culture of China.
The 20th Century saw some of the biggest changes in Chinese history. At the beginning
of the century China was a mess there was almost no industry, an ineffectual and
corrupt government and no standing whatsoever on the world stage.
By the end of our timeline, China is arguably in as good shape as at any point in her
history. The economy seems unstoppable, the government, though far from perfect, is
at least stable, and China is just beginning to flex her considerable muscles on the world
stage.
The 20th Century may have seen China emerge stronger, but it was a terrible period to
live through for many Chinese. Whatever the more recent traumas Chinese may have
faced, they cannot compare in scale to the destruction of WW2 and the civil war, the
Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution.
The blame for two of those events – the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural
Revolution, can be placed squarely on the shoulders of one man, Chairman Mao
Zedong. Therefore, Mao wasn’t all bad for China and nor was he the only influential
figure and other important names include Sun Yatsen, Chiang Kaishek and Deng
Xiaoping.
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Date Event
1890s China is being slowly partitioned by foreign powers. At a time when China
desperately needs reform, the Qing dynasty government of Empress Dowager
Cixi offers stubborn conservatism. The Boxer Rebellion, with the stated aim of
‘overthrowing the Qing and destroying foreigners’ claims that its followers
are bulletproof.
1899 The Boxers are defeated by the Qing, but Cixi decides they might be useful to
her, and sets them the task of killing all the foreigners in China.
1900 An international force arrives in Beijing and routers the Boxers who have
besieged the foreign legation. Cixi and the Emperor escape by disguising
themselves as peasants.
a. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Fall of the Qing
Date Events
1912 The Qing dynasty never really recovered from the humiliations of 1900 and
finally collapses in 1912. Sun Yatsen, who has spent decades travelling the
world to raise funds and campaign against the Qing, founds the Kuomintang
(Nationalist Party) and takes control of the new Republican government. In an
effort to avert civil war he offers the Presidency to Yuan Shikai, former head of
the Qing armies, and warlord in control of Northern China.
1913 Yuan Shikai, who clearly has ambitions to found a new dynasty, dissolves the
new Republican government and sends Sun Yatsen into exile once again.
1916 Yuan Shikai’s sudden death sends Northern China into civil war, while Sun
Yatsen returns to take control of a Kuomintang government in South China.
1921 The CCP is formed. Early members include Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and Li
Dazhao, a Beijing University librarian. At the behest of the Soviet Union, they
join the KMT and fight the Northern warlords.
1925 Sun Yatsen dies. Chiang Kaishek is now in control of the KMT.
1927 After jointly defeating the Northern warlords, the CCP organise a strike against
Chiang and the KMT. They are brutally suppressed, around 5,000 people are
killed, including Yang Kaihui, Mao’s second wife, and Li Dazhao, who is
executed by slow strangulation.
1932 Japan invades Manchuria (Northern China)
1934 The Long March – encircled and outnumbered, the Communists must fight or
flee. They flee, marching almost 10,000km and crossing more than a dozen
mountain ranges. Many die, but the succeed in regrouping and establishing a
base in Yan’an, Sha’anxi.
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1936 Chiang said that ‘The Japanese are a disease of the skin, the Communists are a
disease of the heart’ and wants to focus on defeating the Communists first. His
General Zhang Xueliang disagreed and kidnapped him, forcing him to agree to
a United Front with the Communists against the Japanese.
1937 The Sino-Japanese War starts. In an event known as the Rape of Nanjing,
Japanese troops rape, mutilate, torture and kill at least 200,000 civilians. The
United Front ends when Chiang stops distributing US arms to the Communists.
During the war the KMT retreat westwards while the KMT retreat to the
countryside, away from the lines of transport and communication both the
Japanese and the KMT rely on.
1945 The Japanese surrender. The CCP likes to underestimate the role of the KMT in
the Japanese defeat, and exaggerate its own. By the end of WW2 the KMT had
bankrupted China whilst the CCP had built themselves a strong, national
following from their countryside bases.
b. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Foundation of the PRC
Date Events
1949 In 1949 Mao took Beijing and declared the foundation of the People’s Republic
of China. Generally seen as the ‘good years’ of Chinese socialism. Land is
redistributed to peasants and the economy grows.
1956 The Hundred Flowers Campaign encourages intellectuals to give their opinions
about the government. Many that do are sent straight to jail.
1958 The Great Leap Forward, an attempt to boost production through re-
redistribution of land (into enormous communes) and millions of backyard
furnaces. The result was two failed harvests and millions of deaths from
starvation
c. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – The Cultural Revolution
Date Event
1966 After a few years away from power, discredited by the Great Leap Forward,
Mao starts the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution is
a time of utter chaos where university students (and later, even younger
students) formed into bands of ‘Red Guards’ and went round destroying
anything redolent of the West, capitalism, religion or tradition. Mao’s rivals
within the Party were purged, thousands of lives were ruined, the health and
education system collapsed, and most of China’s cultural heritage was
destroyed.
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1972 The Lin Biao incident sees the death of Mao’s greatest ally and propagandist,
Lin Biao. Historians speculate that he may have attempted a coup against Mao.
1976 The chaos of the cultural revolution ends with the death of Mao. Hua Guofeng
takes over, but has no real powerbase.
1978 Deng Xiaoping ousts Hua Guofeng and, for the almost the first time in Chinese
history, allows his predecessor a relatively peaceful retirement.
d. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Reform and Opening
Date Event
1980 Deng begins the policies of ‘reform and opening up’ which see China open up
its economy and (to a much lesser degree) political life.
1989 Violent suppression of Tiananmen Square protests dents hopes for further
political reform and tarnishes China’s international image, but has little long
term effect on economic progress. Jiang Zemin becomes leader, some
speculate he gets the leadership because of his firm ideological stance and
successful handling of student protests in Shanghai.
1995 Work begins on the Three Gorges Dam.
1997 Deng dies, Hong Kong returns to China.
2001 China is admitted to the World Trade Organisation and bids successfully for
the Olympics.
2002 Jiang Zemin hands the premiership over to Hu Jintao.
2003 The SARS outbreak is the first major crisis of Hu Jintao’s premiership. After
initially attempting to cover up the problem, China’s response is robust.
2003- China’s economy continues to grow at around 10% a year, some economists
Present expect it to overtake the USA by 2020. Government efforts to cut corruption
have some effect, although some allege they are being used to settle political
feuds. Human rights remain a major concern for foreign NGOs, but foreign
governments and business increasingly overlook such issues in the charge to
make money in China
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1.1.3 Location and Geography
A composite satellite image showing the Longsheng Rice Terrace in Guangxi

topography of China.
China has a land area of 3,691,502 square miles (9,596,960 square kilometers), making it
the world's third largest nation. It borders thirteen countries, including Russia and
Mongolia to the north, India to the southwest, and Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam to the
south. To the east, it borders the Yellow Sea, the South China Sea, and the East China
Sea. The climate is extremely diverse, ranging from tropical in the south to subarctic in
the north. In the west, the land consists mostly of mountains, high plateaus, and desert.
The eastern regions are characterized by plains, deltas, and hills. The highest point is
Mount Everest, on the border between Tibet and Nepal, the tallest mountain in the
world.
The Yangtze, the longest river in the country, forms the official dividing line between
north and south China. The Yangtze sometimes floods badly, as does the Yellow River to
the north, which, because of the damage it has caused, is called "China's sorrow." The
country is divided into two regions: Inner China and Outer China. Historically, the two
have been very separate. The Great Wall, which was built in the fifteenth century to
protect the country against military invasions, marks the division. While the areas of the
two regions are roughly equal, 95 percent of the population lives in Inner China.
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1.1.4 Demography
China is the most populous nation on earth; in 2000, the estimated population was
1,261,832,482 (over one-fifth of the world's population). Of these people, 92 percent
are Han Chinese; the remaining 8 percent are people of Zhuang, Uyhgur, Hui, Yi,
Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities. Sichuan, in the
central region, is the most densely populated province. Many of the minority groups live
in Outer China, although the distribution has changed slightly over the years. The
government has supported Han migration to minority territories in an effort to spread
the population more evenly across the country and to control the minority groups in
those areas, which sometimes are perceived as a threat to national stability. The rise in
population among the minorities significantly outpaces that of the Han, as the minority
groups are exempt from the government's one-child policy.
1.1.5 National Identity
Diversity of Ethnic Group in China
The vast majority of Chinese people are of Han descent. They identify with the dominant
national culture and have a sense of history and tradition that dates back over one
thousand years and includes many artistic, cultural, and scientific accomplishments.
When the communists took over in 1949, they worked to create a sense of national
identity based on the ideals of equality and hard work.
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Some minority groups, such as the Manchu, have assimilated almost entirely. While
they maintain their own languages and religions, they identify with the nation as well as
with their own groups. Other minority ethnic groups tend to identify more with their
individual cultures than with the Han. For example, the Mongolians and Kazakhs of the
north and northwest, the Tibetans and the Zhuangs in the southwest, and the
inhabitants of Hainan Island to the southeast are all linguistically, culturally, and
historically distinct from one another and from the dominant tradition. For some
minority groups, the Tibetans and Uigurs of Xinjiang in particular, the issue of
independence has been an acrimonious one and has led those groups to identify
themselves deliberately in opposition to the central culture and its government.
1.1.6 Ethnic Relation
China is for the most part an extremely homogeneous society composed of a people
who share one language, culture, and history. The government recognizes fifty-five
minority groups that have their own distinct cultures and traditions. Most of those
groups live in Outer China, because the Han have, over the centuries, forced them into
those harsh, generally less desirable lands. The Han often consider the minority groups
inferior, if not subhuman; until recently, the characters for their names included the
symbol for "dog." The minority groups harbor a good deal of resentment toward the
Han. Tibet and Xinjiang in particular have repeatedly attempted to separate from the
republic. The Tibetans and the Uighurs of Xinjiang have expressed animosity toward the
Han Chinese who live in bordering regions, and as a result, China has sent troops to
those areas to maintain the peace.
1.1.7 Political Life
The People's Republic of China is one of the world's few remaining socialist states
openly endorsing communism (see Ideology of the Communist Party of China). The
Chinese government has been variously described as communist and socialist, but also
as authoritarian and corporatist, with heavy restrictions in many areas, most notably
against free access to the Internet, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, the right
to have children, free formation of social organizations and freedom of religion. Its
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current political and economic system has been termed by its leaders as "socialism with
Chinese characteristics" (which is Marxism adapted to Chinese circumstances) and as
the "socialist market economy" respectively.
a. Government
China is a communist state. The president is the chief of state and is elected by the
National People's Congress (NPC) for a five-year term. However, the president defers to
the decisions and leadership of the NPC. The NPC is responsible for writing laws and
policy, delegating authority, and supervising other parts of the government. The highest
level in the executive branch of the government is the State Council, which is composed
of a premier, a vice premier, councillors, and various ministers. The State Council
handles issues of internal politics, defense, economy, culture, and education. Its
members are appointed and can be removed by the president's decree.
The country is divided into twenty-three provinces, five autonomous regions, and four
municipalities. (Taiwan is considered the twenty-third province.) At the local level,
elected deputies serve in a local people's congress, a smaller-scale version of the
national body, which is responsible for governing within the region and reports to the
State Council.
The President of China; Xi Jinping The Premier of China; Li Keqiang
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b. Leadership and Political Officials
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is in effect the only political party. Eight registered
small parties are controlled by the CCP. There are no substantial opposition groups, but
there are two—the Falun Gong sect and the China Democracy Party—that the
government sees as potential threats. The Falun Gong in particular has received
international attention because of the government's attempts to suppress it. The
organization claims that it is a meditation group based on Buddhist and Taoist
philosophies; the government considers it a cult that threatens public order and the
state. The government has sent hundreds of Falun Gong members to labor camps and
has imprisoned many of its leaders. The group is legal in Hong Kong.
1.1.8 Basic Economy
In 1978, the country began the slow process of shifting from a Soviet-style economy to a
more free market system, and in twenty years managed to quadruple the gross
domestic product (GDP) and become the second largest economy in the world.
However, the decentralization of the economy has often conflicted with the tight reign
exercised by the highly centralized political system.
Socio-economy in China
The economy is burdened with widespread corruption, bureaucracy, and large state-run
businesses that have been unable to keep pace with economic expansion. Inflation
rates, which rose steeply in the 1980s, fell between 1995 and 1999 as a result of stricter
monetary policies and government control of food prices. While the economy appears
to be improving, the standard of living in rural areas remains poor, and the government
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faces problems collecting taxes in provinces that are becoming increasingly

autonomous, such as Shanghai and Guangzhou.
The labor force consists of 700 million people, of whom 50 percent work in agriculture,
24 percent in industry, and 26 percent in services. The unemployment rate is roughly 10
percent in the cities and higher in the countryside. A large number of migrants move
between the villages and the cities, barely supporting themselves with part-time jobs
and day labor. The national currency is named the yuan.
One of the largest economic challenges has been feeding the enormous population. The
government has taken a two-pronged approach, instituting a series of modernization
projects to improve irrigation and transportation and trying to curb population growth
by allowing each family to have only one child. The one-child law, which does not apply
to minority groups, has faced widespread popular resistance.
1.1.9 Religion
Chinese Buddha Chinese Christian
Freedom of religion is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious

organizations that lack official approval can be subject to state persecution. Estimates of
religious demographics in China vary. A 2007 survey found that 31.4 percent of Chinese
above the age of 16 were religious, while a 2006 study found that 46% of the Chinese
population were religious.
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Over the millennia, the Chinese civilization has been influenced by various religious
movements. China's San Jiao ("three doctrines" or "three religions") include
Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, and historically have had a significant impact in
shaping Chinese culture. Elements of these three belief systems are often incorporated
into popular or folk religious traditions.
Individuals who self-identify as Buddhists made up 11–16% of China's adult population,

while Christians comprised around 3–4%, and Muslims comprised approximately 1%.
Some of the ethnic minorities of China practice unique ethnic religions – Dongbaism is
the traditional religion of the Nakhi people, Moism that of the Zhuang people, and
Ruism that of the Qiang people.
1.1.10 Culture
Since ancient times, Chinese culture has been heavily influenced by Confucianism and
conservative philosophies. For much of the country's dynastic era, opportunities for
social advancement could be provided by high performance in the prestigious imperial
examinations, which have their origins in the Han Dynasty. The literary emphasis of the
exams affected the general perception of cultural refinement in China, such as the belief
that calligraphy, poetry and painting were higher forms of art than dancing or drama.
Chinese culture has long emphasized a sense of deep history and a largely inward-
looking national perspective. Examinations and a culture of merit remain greatly valued
in China today.
The first leaders of the People's Republic of China were born into the traditional
imperial order, but were influenced by the May Fourth Movement and reformist ideals.
They sought to change some traditional aspects of Chinese culture, such as rural land
tenure, sexism, and the Confucian system of education, while preserving others, such as
the family structure and culture of obedience to the state. Some observers see the
period following the establishment of the PRC in 1949 as a continuation of traditional
Chinese dynastic history, while others claim that the Communist Party's rule has
damaged the foundations of Chinese culture, especially through political movements
such as the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s, where many aspects of traditional culture
were destroyed, having been denounced as "regressive and harmful" or "vestiges of
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feudalism". Many important aspects of traditional Chinese morals and culture, such as
Confucianism, art, literature, and performing arts like Peking opera, were altered to
conform to government policies and propaganda at the time. Access to foreign media
remains heavily restricted; only 34 foreign films a year are allowed to be shown in
Chinese cinemas.
A traditional Peking opera being performed Traditional Chinese food in Tianjin,

including dumpling, baozi and guobacai
Today, the Chinese government has accepted numerous elements of traditional Chinese
culture as being integral to Chinese society. With the rise of Chinese nationalism and the
end of the Cultural Revolution, various forms of traditional Chinese art, literature,
music, film, fashion and architecture have seen a vigorous revival, and folk and variety
art in particular have sparked interest nationally and even worldwide. China is now the
third-most-visited country in the world, with 55.7 million inbound international visitors
in 2010. It also experiences an enormous volume of domestic tourism; an estimated 740
million Chinese holidaymakers travelled within the country in October 2012 alone.
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1.1.11 Social Stratification - Classes and Castes
a. Social Classes and castes
Confucian philosophy endorses a hierarchical class system. At the top of the system are
scholars, followed by farmers, artisans, and finally merchants and soldiers. A good deal
of social mobility was possible in that system; it was common practice for a family to
save its money to invest in the education and advancement of the oldest son. When the
communists took control, they overturned this traditional hierarchy, professing the
ideals of a classless society.
Scholar
Farmers & Artisans
Merchants & Soldier
In fact, the new system still has an elite and a lower class. Society is divided into two
main segments: the ganbu, or political leaders, and the peasant masses. According to
the philosophy of the Communist Party, both classes share the same interests and goals
and therefore should function in unison for the common good. In reality, there is a large
and growing gap between the rich and the poor. Wealthy people live in the cities, while
the poor tend to be concentrated in the countryside. However, farmers have begun to
migrate to the cities in search of work in increasing numbers, giving rise to housing and
employment problems and creating a burgeoning class of urban poor people.
b. Symbols of Social Stratification
Cars, a rare commodity, are a symbol of high social and economic standing. Comfortable
living accommodations with luxuries such as hot running water are another. Many
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government employees who could not otherwise afford these things get them as perks
of the job. As recently as the 1980s, most people dressed in simple dark-colored
clothing. Recently, more styles have become available, and brand-name or imitation
brand-name American clothes are a marker of prosperity. This style of dress is more
common in the cities but is visible in the countryside among the better-off farmers.
Many minority groups maintain their traditional attire. Tibetans dress in layers of
clothes to protect themselves from the harsh weather. The women wrap their heads in
cloth. Uighur women wear long skirts and bright-colored scarves; the men wear
embroidered caps.
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Question 1
DETERMINE AND ASSESS THE “OBSERVABLE

INDICATORS” THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE
WELL-BEING OF THE PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY
2
2.1 What is Social Indicators?
There are a much of definitions about Social Indicators (SI) (Prayong, 2014). Bauer
(1966), described them as forms of evidence that help assessment of present position
and future directions. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) stated that a SI is a “direct and valid statistical measure which monitors levels
and changes over time in a fundamental social concern.” A social concern is “an
identifiable and definable aspiration or concern of fundamental and direct importance
to human well-being”.
Indicators may be material, such as numbers related to economic growth, and/or

immaterial, such as values or goals (Giovannini, 2009). Atkinson et al (2002) saw SI as “a
parsimonious set of specific indices covering a broad range of social concerns”. This set
includes statistics similar to economic statistics of the national accounts which are
intended to provide a basis for making concise, comprehensive and balanced judgments
about the conditions of major aspects of society as accurate measures of a good society
(Armstrong, 2009). The concept covers interpretation of cultural signs, simple statistical
measures, and complex statistical indexes related to sets of domains (Frones, 2007).
These are used to assess the effectiveness of policy in addressing important social
issues.
2.1.1 What is an Indicator?
There is no single, universally accepted definition of the term ‘indicator’ (Scrivens,

2010). This simply reflects the fact that purpose, scope and methodology can vary
greatly from one indicator, or set of indicators, to the next. Most indicators are
developed in order to describe important features of a larger system. They are “succinct
measures that aim to describe as much about a system as possible in as few points as
possible” and which “help us understand a system, compare it and improve it”
(Pencheon, 2008).
The OECD defines an indicator as “a parameter, or a value derived from parameters,

which points to, provides information about, describes the state of a phenomenon,
environment, area, with a significance extending beyond that directly associated with a
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parameter value” (Linster, 2003). The policy relevance of an indicator is one example of
such extended significance; indicators of societal progress are generally developed to
inform policy decision-making in some way.
Components of a Definition for Social Indicators

1 Social indicators are measures of social conditions
2 Social indicators are measured over a period of time (must be time series)
3 Social indicators should be disagreeable
4 Social indicators should display a historical pattern and show variation in social
change issues
5 Social indicators are of normative interest, must be related to social welfare (broadly
defined as well-being or quality of life
6 Social indicators measure welfare or system outputs and outcomes
7 Social indicators should if possible be direct measures of the variables they
represent
8 Social indicators should be defined so that the direction of change is known
Table of Components of a Definition for Social Indicators
2.2 Subjective and Objective Social Indicators
The kind of indicators chosen for empirical measurement depends on the purpose of the
measure and the underlying conceptualisation. While objective social indicators are
statistics which represent social facts independent of personal evaluations, subjective
social indicators are measure of individual perceptions and evaluations of social
conditions. Historically, two main and polar efforts to operationize welfare in general
and the quality of life in particular can be distinguished: the Scandinavian level of living
approach and the American quality of life approach. Today, the overall consensus of
opinion is to base welfare measurement on both subjective and objective indicators.
This makes sense because similar living conditions can be evaluated differently by
people with different backgrounds and experiences. It is however of particular interest
how subjective and objective assessments of a person's living condition may differ
substantially (Noll, 2004).
21
2.2.1 Objective Social Indicators
Objective social indicators represent social facts independently of personal evaluations.

Examples include: unemployment rate, poverty rate, working hours per week, perinatal
mortality rate. The Scandinavian approach focuses almost exclusively on resources and
objective living conditions as capture by objective SIs. The resources are understood as
mere means that allow the individual citizen to use them in an autonomous way.
Resources are defined in terms of money, property, knowledge, psychic and physical
energy, social relations, security and so on. This approach is in some respect similar to
the 'capabilities approach' developed by Amartya Sen. His notion of welfare and quality
of life has been elaborated within the human development approach.
The use of objective indicators needs to make the assumption that living conditions can
be judged to be favourable or unfavourable from the outside which requires comparing
real conditions with normative criteria like values, goals or objectives. This requires a
societal and, to some extent, political consensus about three issues: first, the welfare
relevant dimensions; second, what good and bad conditions are; third, the direction
which society should take. For some goals these three things are generally
acknowledged, like the reduction of the unemployment or poverty rate, while for
example income inequality might or might not be regarded as a social progress (Noll,
1996).
2.2.2 Subjective Social Indicators
Subjective social indicators are based on individuals ‘perception and evaluation of social
conditions. Example include: life satisfaction, job satisfaction, etc.; relevance of different
life domains, perception of distributional justice, class identification. The American
quality of life research bases welfare measurement primarily on subjective indicators
and emphasises the subjective valuing of individuals as a final outcome of conditions
and processes. The common man is considered the best expert to evaluate his quality of
life. The most important measures of subjective well-being are happiness and
satisfaction (Noll, 1996). The World Values Survey produces such data for many
countries worldwide.
22
The main criticism levelled at pure subjective SI approaches is that the degree of
satisfaction is partly determined by people's aspiration as seen realistic in a given
society. Thus, measuring subjective satisfaction would amount to "measuring how well
they are adapted to their present conditions" (Erikson, 1993). Others have underlined
that subjective indicators provide valuable complementary information for policy
maker's assessment of policies outcomes and for the selection of policy goals (Noll,
2004), and prioritisation of policy goals.
2.3 Functions of Social Indicators
Generally, SI perform one or more of three functions, providing a basis for information
for decision-making, monitoring and evaluating policies, and/or searching for a common
good and deciding how to reach it (Franchet, 2009). Indicators should be phrased in
such a way that they can be interpreted by the general public so that members of the
community can provide feedback to promote the development of the organization.
Identifying community needs are counted as social indicators(Armstrong, 2002).
Indicators should also be designed so that they only show "progress" when social
circumstances have really changed. They should not be easily manipulable by political
initiatives that do not have a real impact on people's lives.
2.4 Framework of Social Indicators
Progress can be considered as a broad notion of a community‟s well-being that changes

over time. While life satisfaction focuses on the subjective assessment of different
elements that affect individual lives, well-being has been used to refer to objective living
conditions. Both concepts refer to the condition of the current generation but
sustainable development attempts to consider the well-being of future generations,
introducing an inter-generational dimension often absent in other frameworks. Societal
progress occurs when there is an improvement in the “sustainable and equitable well-
being of a society… “to” …encourage communities to consider for themselves what
„progress‟ means in the 21st century”( Giovannini, 2009).
23
Salvaris (2000) described a rapid growth in the development of community-based

planning projects using benchmarks and indicators to measure progress. For the past 30
years, these projects have occurred in many countries at different levels. Five dominant
features are involved in these types of projects:
a. The integration of the economic-social-environmental domains to respond to the

well-being of people in a well-rounded manner
b. The pronouncement of the benchmarks and indicators to monitor ongoing
progress
c. The participation of the community in the production of the benchmarks and
indicators
d. The acquisition of a lengthy period of time to proceed
e. The realization of legitimate policy-making.
All of these produce an innovation with a sense of civil society (Salvaris, 2000).
2.5 What is Social Well-Being?
Social well-being may be defined as a condition in which the needs and wants of the
population are satisfied. A well society is one in which people can meet their basic
needs; where poverty has been reduced; where people are socially and economically
mobile and respectful of the dignity of others; and where they have access to good
services in a stable, democratic and participatory environment (Eyles, 1986).
Quality of life is seen as the psychological, individual aspects of social well-being. It

reflects a state of mind, dependent on socio-economic position and individual
attributes. A high quality of life may, therefore, be based on an unthinking acquiescence
to the prevailing order of things. In a more general sense, quality of life can take
environmental factors into account pollution, energy and diet. In this way it can be used
as a general term for comparing the performance of different nations (Eyles, 1986). Two
fundamental dimensions are, therefore, involved in encapsulating a good society:
a. an internal psycho-physiological component representing the sense of wellbeing,

satisfaction or gratification or their opposites, and
24
b. the external environment (the domains of social life) that impinges on the
c. individual’s ability to shaping his/her living conditions.
2.6 What is “Observable Indicators” Assess That Contribute to The Well-Being of

the People in China?
According The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD (2014)
stated that, there are eleven (11) observable indicators that can contribute to the well-
being of the people in China. In terms of scope, the framework distinguishes between
current material living conditions and quality of life, on the one hand, and the conditions
required to ensure their sustainability over time, on the other:
a. Material living conditions (or economic well-being) determine people’s

consumption possibilities and their command over resources. While this is
shaped by GDP, the latter also includes activities that do not contribute to
people’s well-being (e.g. activities aimed at offsetting some of the regrettable
consequences of economic development) while it excludes non-market activities
that expand people’s consumption possibilities.
b. Quality of life, defined as the set of non-monetary attributes of individuals,

shapes their opportunities and life chances, and has intrinsic value under
different cultures and contexts.
c. The sustainability of the socio-economic and natural systems where people live
and work is critical for well-being to last over time. Sustainability depends on how
current human activities impact on the stocks of different types of capital
(natural, economic, human and social). However, suitable indicators for
describing the evolution of these stocks are still lacking in many fields. For this
reason, indicators of sustainability are not included in this Compendium,
although some of them will feature in “How’s Life?”.
25
Criteria 1: Material Living Condition

1 Income and Wealth Income and wealth are essential components of the well-
being of individuals and societies. Both income and
wealth expand people’s consumption possibilities,
providing them with the resources to satisfy their needs.
Wealth also allows individuals to smooth consumption
over time and to protect them from unexpected shocks
that could lead to poverty and destitution. Income and
wealth also bring non-economic benefits, such as higher
health status and education, higher life satisfaction and
the possibility of living in safer and cleaner areas.
2 Jobs and Earning Both the availability of jobs and the earnings they pay are
relevant for well-being. Not only they increase people’s
command over resources, but they also provide people
with a chance to fulfil their own ambitions, to develop
skills and abilities, to feel useful in society and to build
self-esteem. Societies with high levels of employment are
also richer, more politically stable and healthier. The
experience of unemployment is one of the factors that
have the strongest negative impact on people’s
subjective well-being, with effects that are much larger
than the income loss associated with unemployment.
There is also evidence that this impact persists over time
and that psychological resilience to unemployment is low
(Dolan et al., 2008).
3 Housing Having an adequate accommodation is at the top of the
hierarchy of human material needs. Housing is the largest
component of many households‟ expenditures and is
central to people’s ability to meet basic needs. In
addition, poor housing conditions can affect people’s
health status (both mental and physical), family
functioning (e.g. relations between household members
and the development of children) and the conduct of
basic social activities such as inviting people at home.
Criteria 2: Quality of Life

4 Health Status People’s health is one of the most valued aspects of
people’s life. Surveys in many countries consistently
26
found that people put health status, together with jobs,

at the top of what affects their living conditions. People’s
health status matter in itself, but also for achieving other
dimensions of well-being, such as having good jobs and
adequate income, being able to participate as full citizens
to community life, to socialise with others, to attend
school and adult education.
5 Work and life Balance Striking the right balance between the commitments of
work and those of private life is central to people’s well-
being. Too little work can prevent people from earning
enough to attain desired standards of living. But too
much work can also have a negative impact on well-being
if people’s health or personal lives suffer as a
consequence, or if they cannot perform other important
activities, such as looking after their children and other
relatives, having time for themselves, etc. (OECD, 2011).
The way people allocate their time is determined by both
necessity and personal circumstances, which in turn are
shaped by individuals‟ preferences and by the cultural,
social and policy contexts in which people live.
6 Education and Skills Education is a basic need and an important aspiration of

people. It has a strong influence on their well-being.
Better educated individuals earn higher wages and have a
higher probability to have a job. They live longer lives,
report a better health status and a lower occurrence of
chronic diseases and disabilities. Better educated
individuals also participate more actively in politics and in
the community where they live, they commit fewer
crimes and rely less on social assistance. At the level of
the society as a whole, better education leads to higher
GDP growth, higher tax revenues and lower social
expenditures.
7 Social Connections Humans are social creatures. The frequency of their

contacts with others and the quality of their personal
relationships are crucial determinants of well-being.
People get pleasure from spending time with others, be it
their family, friends or colleagues. Activities are more
27
satisfying when shared with others. Furthermore, social

networks can provide material and emotional support in
times of need, as well as providing access to jobs and
other opportunities. The nature of social interactions also
has wider implications beyond the immediate social
circle, impacting levels of trust within their community,
which is an important driver of other outcomes including
democratic participation, crime and health (OECD, 2001).
8 Civic Engagement and Participating in society, through for instance the

Governance expression of political voice, is essential to individual well-
being. Political voice is not only part of basic freedoms
and rights that are worthwhile to all humans, but it also
enhances the accountability and the effectiveness of
public policy. This has in turn a strong impact on well-
being as public policy has a strong bearing on individual
lives, for instance through the public services provided,
the regulation and framing of various institutions and
markets, the justice system, etc. In addition to these
benefits, participating into community life allows
individuals to develop a sense of belonging and trust in
others.
9 Environmental quality The environment where people live is a key component

of people’s quality of life. The impact of environmental
pollutants on health is sizeable, with around one fourth
of the global burden of diseases deemed to be associated
with poor environmental conditions. But the
environment also matters intrinsically when people
attach importance to the beauty and the cleanliness of
the place where they live.
10 Personal Security Personal security is a core element for the well-being of

individuals and of society as a whole, and the experience
of crime is one of the main factors shaping people’s
personal security. Crime may lead to loss of life and
property, as well as engendering physical pain, post-
traumatic stress and anxiety. It may also cause
impairments in occupational activities (e.g. lower
productivity and higher absenteeism) and disruption in
28
social functioning (e.g. restriction in freedom of

movement and erosion of social cohesion within
communities). The biggest impact of crime on people’s
well-being appears to be through the feeling of
vulnerability that it causes (Anand and Santos, 2006).
11 Subjective Well-Being Notions of “happiness”, “utility”, or “welfare” have a long

tradition as part of conceptions of a good life. They
capture the notion that what matters in a good life is not
the presence of a specific set of life circumstances, but
the impact these have on how people feel about their
life. Life satisfaction captures a reflective assessment of
how things are going in one’s own life, and allows
assessing which life circumstances and conditions are
important for subjective well-being (Kahneman and
Krueger, 2006). Looking at life satisfaction measures also
helps understanding the gap between objective living
conditions of people and their own evaluation of these
conditions (Heliwell, 2008).
Table of List observable indicators that can contribute to the well-being of the people in China
2.6.1 How are Indicators of Well-Being Selected?
The selection of indicators is largely guided by a conceptual framework of well-being,

supported by consultations with experts and interested parties both inside and outside
china’s government.
Individual Chinese and their families interact with each other and with social institutions
over the course of their lives, building up and expending resources of different kinds
(such as time, finances, goods and services, and social networks). Resources can be
personal assets such as health and skills. Resources can also be the goods and services
provided by social institutions. Finally, resources can be societal assets such as the
environment and social order.
At the individual level, well-being is associated with quality of life and influenced by
factors such as family relationships, health, friends and community, and work. At the
29
societal level, well-being consists of the collective well-being of individuals, the quality
of the interactions that individuals have with each other and with their social
institutions, and the quality of the interactions among social institutions.
Since an individual's situation can change over time, there is also a life-course aspect to
well-being. Choices (for example, to attend university) and significant life events (such
as a job loss) can alter the course of an individual's life, and thus, his or her well-being.
Having access to resources helps individuals cope with major changes, or transitions,
that may occur at various times in their lives.
Based on availability of statistics, our indicators attempt to capture the level and flow of
resources over time, providing measures of well-being for the individual and society.
2.6.2 Measuring Well-Being
30
In addition, an indicator is considered appropriate because of:
Relevant The indicator is informative and potentially useful for discussion,

analysis, and decision-making around well-being issues (world bank
2014)
Objective The indicator, underlying methodology, and its reporting are accurate
and credible
Continuous Enabling monitoring and assessment over time and the identification
of trends
Comparable Matching, where feasible, indicators and definitions used by other
parties, including international organizations
Detailed The indicator can be sufficiently disaggregated according to region,
gender, age, and other basic categories
Available Existing data can be used to construct the indicator, or current
surveys can be amended to yield new data.
31
Thus far these lists refer to the national scale and international comparisons. It is,
however, fair to argue that most of these make sense in terms of group, sub-national or
local levels. What would change would be the indicator most appropriate to measure
the dimension. Isolating the dimensions of social life has produced much research using
objective indicators. But as our definitions remind us there is a fundamental
psychological component to well-being or quality of life.
In presenting the indicator criteria, within each area of well-being the indicators are
organized into three groupings related to well-being:
Status Indicators of condition or progress (such as level of education, number of

Chinese employed, or life expectancy).
Indicators related to significant transitions that we may experience over
Life Events the course of our lives (such as getting married, changing jobs, or
experiencing a major illness).
Key Indicators that reflect individual and societal resources (for example,
Influences access to computers at schools, daily exercise, or the availability of public
transit).
Each indicator contains certain basic information:
Relevance Explains how the indicator is important with respect to well-

being.
Summary Presents highlights and links to all the sub-sections.
National Picture Presents national data on the overall status of the indicator.
Break-downs Depending on availability of data, presents national data broken
down by age, gender, regions, and other relevant categories.
International Picture Where data permit, provides comparisons with other countries,
particularly with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) member countries.
In a few cases, an indicators may contain more than one measure. For example, the
employment rate indicator presents two measures: employed persons as a percentage
of working-age adults, and employed persons as a percentage of the total population.
32
Question 2
EXAMINE THE WELL-BEING OF THE PEOPLE IN

THIS COUNTRY
3
3.1 The Life Context in China
According to National Geographic (2004), before 1949 the Chinese economy was
characterized by widespread poverty, extreme income inequalities, and endemic
insecurity of livelihood. By means of centralized economic planning, China was able to
redistribute national income so as to provide the entire population with at least the
minimal necessities of life (except during the "three bad years" of 1959, 1960, and 1961)
and to consistently allocate a relatively high proportion of national income to productive
investment.
China Citizen
Equally important to the quality of life were the results of mass public health and
sanitation campaigns, which rid the country of most of the conditions that had bred
epidemics and lingering disease in the past. The most concrete evidence of improved
living standards was that average national life expectancy more than doubled, rising
from around thirty-two years in 1949 to sixty-nine years in 1985. In addition, the
percentage of the Chinese population estimated to be living in absolute poverty fell
from between 200-270 million in 1978 to 100 million in 1985.
In 1987 the standard of living in China was much lower than in the industrialized
countries, but nearly all Chinese people had adequate food, clothing, and housing. In
addition, there was a positive trend toward rapid improvements in living conditions in
33
the 1980s as a result of the economic reforms, though improvements in the standard of
living beyond the basic level came slowly.
Until the end of the 1970s, the fruits of economic growth were largely negated by
population increases, which prevented significant advances in the per capita availability
of food, clothing, and housing beyond levels achieved in the 1950s.
The second major change in the standard of living came about as a result of the rapid
expansion of productivity and commerce generated by the reform measures of the
1980s. After thirty years of austerity and marginal sufficiency, Chinese consumers
suddenly were able to buy more than enough to eat from a growing variety of food
items. Stylish clothing, modern furniture, and a wide array of electrical appliances also
became part of the normal expectations of ordinary Chinese families.
Following the economic reforms introduced by the government in the late 1970s,
consumption and individual incomes rose significantly, with the real per capita
consumption of peasants rising at an annual rate of 6.7% from 1975 to 1986, while for
urbanites over the same period, the corresponding figure was 5.5%. The improvements
in the standard of living were demonstrated by a boom in rural and urban housing,
together with a considerable increase in the ownership of televisions and other
appliances.
3.1.1 Income and Wealth
Income and wealth are essential components of the well-being of individuals and
societies in China. Both income and wealth expand people's consumption possibilities,
providing them with the resources to satisfy their needs. Wealth also allows individuals
to smooth consumption over time and to protect them from unexpected shocks that
could lead to poverty and destitution.
China’s growth has been so rapid that virtually every household has benefited
significantly, fuelling the steep drop in poverty. However, different people have
benefited to very different extents, so that inequality has risen during the reform
period. This is true for inequality in household income or consumption, as well as for
34
inequality in important social outcomes such as health status or educational attainment.

Concerning household consumption, the Gini measure of inequality increased from year
by year.
Disposable Personal Income in China increased to 26955 Yuan in 2013 from 24565 Yuan
in 2012. Disposable Personal Income in China averaged 6824.43 Yuan from 1978 until
2013, reaching an all time high of 26955 Yuan in 2013 and a record low of 343.40 Yuan
in 1978. Disposable Personal Income in China is reported by the National Bureau of
Statistics of China.
Such inequalities also highlight a contradiction in that although the monetisation of

previously state-owned assets undoubtedly benefited many of China's emerging middle
class, it ultimately came at a cost to the public who would now have to finance these
goods and services out of personal savings.
China is enjoying double digit economic growth, but as the World Bank has pointed out,
avoiding what is known as the middle income trap won't be easy as its economy
continues to grow. Moving from being a "middle income" to a "high income" country is
a lot harder than moving from being a "low income" to a "middle income" place to live.
China's per capita income was around 2,190 Yuan in 2009, the most recent year for
which detailed figures are available, making it a "lower-middle income country".
35
It still has the second-largest number of poor consumers in the world. So far this year,
increases in the minimum wage in different parts of the country have ranged from 10%
to more than 30%. And for those in the middle classes, who earn far more than the
minimum wage, pay rises of 10% are not necessarily the norm.
3.1.2 Job and Earning
Both the availability of jobs and the earnings they pay are relevant for well-being. Not
only they increase people’s command over resources, but they also provide people with
a chance to fulfil their own ambitions, to develop skills and abilities, to feel useful in
society and to build self-esteem. Societies with high levels of employment are also
richer, more politically stable and healthier. The experience of unemployment is one of
the factors that have the strongest negative impact on people’s subjective well-being,
with effects that are much larger than the income loss associated with unemployment.
The first indicator is the number of persons who have been employed and unemployed
for one year or more as a share of the labour force (the sum of the employed and the
unemployed). Unemployed persons are those who are currently not working but are
willing to do so and actively searching for jobs.
36
The number of employed persons in China increased to 76977 Tens of Thousands in

2013 from 76704 Tens of Thousands in 2012. Employed Persons in China averaged
58826.14 Tens of Thousands from 1952 until 2013, reaching an all time high of 76977
Tens of Thousands in 2013 and a record low of 20729 Tens of Thousands in 1952.
The graph above show the unemployed persons in china are individuals who are without
a job and actively seeking to work. The number of unemployed persons in China
increased to 940 Thousand in the first quarter of 2014 from 926 Thousand in the fourth
quarter of 2013. Unemployed Persons in China averaged 877.12 Thousand from 2004
37
until 2014, reaching an all time high of 940 Thousand in the first quarter of 2014 and a
record low of 810 Thousand in the first quarter of 2004.
China’s workers
In term of working age for children, most of the children are usually between the age of
5 and 17. They have to work in extreme conditions for long hours. They have to work
under risky circumstances. Their families are poor so they are willing to work to earn
some money. Because their family needs that extra source of income. In China, they
have a law that does not allow children under the age of 16 to work.
3.1.3 Housing
A safe and comfortable place to live is fundamental to the sense of well-being. When
housing is inadequate or unavailable, individual as well as community well-being may
suffer. Most of the cities in China were dominated by welfare-oriented public rental
housing provided by either the government or public employers. Severe housing
shortages, residential crowding, and poor housing conditions were common problems in
cities of China. Over the last two decades, Chinese cities have experienced an
unprecedented housing privatization, as the Chinese government has sold public rental
housing at subsidized prices, encouraged developers to provide new private housing,
and ended public housing provisions.
In term of living condition of house in China, residential floor space per capita in China’s
cities is 340 square foot in 2012, although this is still much smaller than in the US (700
square foot per person). Three-quarters of households in cities/towns (85% of all
38
households nationwide) were homeowners in 2012. Even though some apartments are
owned with partial property rights due to subsidies, the rate of homeownership in China
is much higher than in many developed countries. Despite this progress, scarcity of
housing continued to be a major problem in the cities, and many young married couples
had to live with parents or make do with a single room.
Poverty and Poor Housing in China
Meanwhile, housing prices have skyrocketed in cities, with the national average housing
price increasing by 250% in the decade between 2000 and 2010. The housing price-
income ratio classifies much of China as “severely unaffordable” in terms of housing. In
big cities like Beijing and Shanghai, a modest apartment can cost multiple millions of
Yuan to purchase, and thousands of Yuan to rent, making housing affordability the top
concern of most low- and middle- income households.
High Cost Housing in China
39
According to the survey, in 2013, 75.3% of those surveyed believe the standard of living
has risen compared to five years ago, and rural resident incomes are evidently higher
than those of urban residents. Surveys measuring the life pressures of residents’
indicates that nearly 70% of the public feels the pressure of “soaring commodity prices
affecting the quality of life”, though this is a 10% decline from 2008. Nearly 40% of those
surveyed believe that “housing conditions are poor, can’t afford to build/purchase
housing”.
3.1.4 Health
Health has an impact on so many aspects of an individual's life that it's hard to discuss
well-being without taking it into consideration. Good health allows individuals to
strengthen their development, thereby enabling them to live productive and rewarding
lives. Health is central to a vibrant learning environment for children and youth. Physical
and mental health is important for families and individuals throughout the course of
their lives.
Chinese traditional Medicine; Acupuncture
In China, traditional medicine is still widely practiced. It is an ancient, intricate system

that places an emphasis on the whole body rather than specific ailments. All natural
elements, including human beings, are thought to be made up of yin (the female force)
and yang (the male force). These opposing forces are part of the body's qi.
Health problems are considered a manifestation of an imbalance of yin and yang, that
disrupts a person's qi. Remedies to right the imbalance include snake gallbladder,
40
powdered deer antlers, and rhinoceros horn, as well as hundreds of different

combinations of herbs. Another method of treatment is acupuncture, which involves the
insertion of thin needles into the body to regulate and redirect the flow of qi. Massage
techniques are also used, and doctors avoid cutting into the body.
Western Medical Facilities
Western medical facilities are much more accessible in the cities than in the
countryside. Even those who have access to Western medicine often use a combination
of the two systems, but the government, which runs all the major health facilities,
places a priority on Western medical practices.
Health conditions have improved significantly since 1949. Life expectancy has risen, and
many diseases, including plague, smallpox, cholera, and typhus, have been eliminated.
Smoking is a growing health concern, particularly since American cigarette companies
have begun large-scale marketing campaigns. HIV and AIDS are increasingly a problem,
particularly in Yunnan province, which borders Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar. It is
exacerbated by prostitution, a rise in intravenous drug use, and lack of education.
The leading risk factors in China in 2010 included:

i. Smoking - The costs of smoking in china have risen more than 300 per cent in
under a decade - there are over 300 million smokers in the country.
ii. Diet - 92 million Chinese people are living with diabetes (mostly type 2 diabetes),
that is nearly ten per cent of China's 1.3 billion people.
iii. High blood pressure
iv. Ambient air pollution - air and water pollution still cause a significant number of
deaths and diseases in the country.
41
Life Expectancy at Birth
Life expectancy at birth; total (years) in China was last measured at 75.04 in 2011,
according to the World Bank. Life expectancy at birth indicates the number of years a
newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of mortality at the time of its birth were
to stay the same throughout its life.
Life Expectancy of Women
42
Life Expectancy of Men
Women have longer life-expectancy than men but also report lower satisfaction with
their health status. Satisfaction with health also declines with people’s age. Regardless
of countries’ political structures or health systems, people with lower income or
education experience higher mortality and morbidity (OECD, 2010), due to a
combination of more difficult life- and work-circumstances, less healthy life-styles (e.g.
higher incidence of smoking and obesity) and lower access to appropriate health care.
3.1.5 Work and Life Balance
Striking the right balance between the commitments of work and those of private life is
central to people’s well-being. Too little work can prevent people from earning enough
to attain desired standards of living. But too much work can also have a negative impact
on well-being if people’s health or personal lives suffer as a consequence, or if they
cannot perform other important activities, such as looking after their children and other
relatives, having time for themselves, etc.
The average Chinese worker spends eight hours and forty minutes a day exchanging
their labour for currency, and 30% work for at least ten hours, according to a new study
by the nation's Institute of Social Science (2010). There are specific contracted hours for
employees, nevertheless, the cases of employees staying beyond their contracted hours
without additional payment are commonplace.
43
On average, people in China spend over 15 hours per day on personal care and leisure,
with less than one-third of this amount devoted to leisure. On the other hand, on
average, in China, 66% of mothers with children of compulsory school age are working
in some capacity, compared to an average employment rate for all women aged 25 to
49 of 72%. Cultural factors and inflexible working arrangements and family policies in
support of working women may explain this pattern.
Chinese spend time with family Leisure Time
The majority of employers in China do not employ child labour and yet the increased
stress on competitive production combined with a poorly regulated labour market and
widespread corruption has resulted in some employers turning to child labour as a way
of reducing unit costs of production. Children are both cheaper and easier to exploit
than adults and can often do repetitive work which requires agility and smallness.
Gender is a key determinant of inequalities in work and life (OECD, 2011). Although men
spend longer hours in paid work than women, women have less leisure time than men
due to the longer hours that women devote to unpaid work such as housework and
caring for children and elderly relatives. Age is also a factor shaping work life-balance,
with the young and elderly having more leisure time than the working-age population.
3.1.6 Education and Skill
Significant shifts have occurred in the past 20 years in terms of education. Education is
now an extremely high priority in China, both for the government and for parents. In
44
addition to the nine years of compulsory education, there has also been a significant
increase in the number of people completing senior secondary school and college
education. Being able to provide for the education of your child, therefore, has become
a salient work-life issue for parents and their lack of willingness to move for
employment.
From a very young age, children in China are assigned responsibilities in both the family
and the community. In the countryside, this means farm chores; in the city, it consists of
housework or even sweeping the street. Schoolchildren are responsible for keeping the
classroom clean and orderly.
Primary School Secondary School
Under communism, when women were encouraged to take jobs outside the home, child
care facilities became prevalent. Grandparents also play a significant role in raising
children, especially when the mother works outside the home.
Education is mandatory for nine years. Ninety-six percent of children attend

kindergarten and elementary school, and about two-thirds continue on to secondary
school, which lasts for three years. In high school, students pursue either technical
training or a general education. Those who receive a general education can take the
extremely difficult qualifying exams to enter a university. The educational system
stresses obedience and rote learning over creativity. Both traditional Confucians and the
Communist Party view education as a method for inculcating values in the young. Under
Mao, the educational system suffered from propaganda and the devaluation of
45
intellectual pursuits. Because of the size of the population, classrooms and teachers are
in short supply.
The country has made great progress in increasing the literacy of the general
population. When the communists came to power, only 15 percent of the population
could read and write. Today, the rate is over 75 percent.
Higher education is not accessible to many. Admission to the universities is extremely

competitive; only 2 percent of the population attends college. In addition to the
rigorous entrance examination, students are required to demonstrate their loyalty to
the Communist Party. During the summers, university students perform manual labour.
The curriculum emphasizes science and technology. It is considered a great honour to
undertake advanced study, and a university degree virtually guarantees a comfortable
position after graduation. The most prestigious universities are in Beijing and Qinghua,
but there are more than a hundred others scattered throughout the country. There are
technical and vocational schools that train students in agriculture, medicine, mining, and
education.
Women are generally more educated than men. Girls have higher reading competencies
but, often, lower mathematics skills. Children of immigrant origins display lower
competencies than children of native born (OECD, 2010). In addition, cognitive skills are
strongly influenced by the socio-economic background of the family where students live
(OECD, 2010). There is a positive relationship between average achievements and equity
of achievements (OECD, 2010).
3.1.7 Social Connection
Humans are social creatures. The frequency of their contacts with others and the quality
of their personal relationships are crucial determinants of well-being. People get
pleasure from spending time with others, be it their family, friends or colleagues.
Activities are more satisfying when shared with others. Furthermore, social networks
can provide material and emotional support in times of need, as well as providing access
to jobs and other opportunities.
46
As general in China, men are more likely to have contacts with friends at least once a
week, while women are more likely to have contact with relatives. Age and income also
affect the frequency of social contacts. Poor people are roughly twice as likely to have
no contact with friends or relatives. The elderly are three times more likely to report no
contacts with friends than the general population.
Education and economic status also influence social network support. Over 90% of
people with secondary or tertiary education can count on someone for help in an
emergency, compared with only 72% of people with only primary education. Similar
differences apply between upper and lower income quintiles, with 92% of top earners
saying they can count on someone, compared with 73% of people at the bottom of the
income ladder.
3.1.8 Civic Engagement and Governance
Participating in society, through for instance the expression of political voice, is essential
to individual well-being. Political voice is not only part of basic freedoms and rights that
are worthwhile to all humans, but it also enhances the accountability and the
effectiveness of public policy. This has in turn a strong impact on well-being as public
policy has a strong bearing on individual lives, for instance through the public services
provided, the regulation and framing of various institutions and markets, the justice
system, etc. Voter participation is a proxy for civic and political engagement and of how
this can effectively shape the society where people live. Information on electoral
participation should be complemented by measures of other types of participation in
society and institutional trust.
The politics of the People's Republic of China takes place in a framework of a socialist
republic run by a single party, the Communist Party of China. The leadership[ambiguous]
of the Communist Party is stated in the Constitution of the People's Republic of China.
State power within the People's Republic of China (PRC) is exercised through the
Communist Party, the Central People's Government and their provincial and local
representation. Under the dual leadership system, each local Bureau or office is under
the coequal authority of the local leader and the leader of the corresponding office,
bureau or ministry at the next higher level. People's Congress members at the county
47
level are elected by voters. These county level People's Congresses have the
responsibility of oversight of local government, and elect members to the Provincial (or
Municipal in the case of independent municipalities) People's Congress. The Provincial
People's Congress in turn elects members to the National People's Congress that meets
each year in March in Beijing. The ruling Communist Party committee at each level plays
a large role in the selection of appropriate candidates for election to the local congress
and to the higher levels.
Elections in the People's Republic of China are based on a hierarchical electoral system,
whereby local People's Congresses are directly elected, and all higher levels of People's
Congresses up to the National People's Congress, the national legislature, are indirectly
elected by the People's Congress of the level immediately below.
Governors, mayors, and heads of counties, districts, townships and towns in turn
elected by the respective local People's Congresses. Presidents of people's courts and
chief procurators of people's procuratorates are elected by the respective local People's
Congresses above the county level. The President and the State Council are elected by
the National People's Congress.
3.1.9 Environmental Quality
The environment where people live is a key component of people’s quality of life. The
impact of environmental pollutants on health is sizeable, with around one fourth of the
global burden of diseases deemed to be associated with poor environmental conditions.
But the environment also matters intrinsically when people attach importance to the
beauty and the cleanliness of the place where they live.
China has many environmental issues, severely affecting its physical environment as
well as human health. Rapid industrialization as well as lax environmental oversight
have contributed to the problems.
Various forms of pollution have increased as China have industrialized which has caused
widespread environmental and health problems. China has responded with increasing
environmental regulations and a build-up of pollutant treatment infrastructure which
48
have caused improvements on some variables. As of 2013 Beijing, which lies in a

topographic bowl, has significant industry, and heats with coal, is subject to air
inversions resulting in extremely high levels of pollution in winter months.
According to a report published by Greenpeace and Peking University’s School of Public

Health in December 2012, the coal industry is responsible for the highest levels of air
pollution (19 percent), followed by vehicle emissions (6 percent). In January 2013, fine
airborne particulates that pose the largest health risks, rose as high as 993 micrograms
per cubic meter in Beijing, compared with World Health Organization guidelines of no
more than 25. The World Bank estimates that 16 of the world's most-polluted cities are
located in China.
The risk and severity of adverse health consequences due to exposure to air pollution
differ across people, depending on their characteristics, biological susceptibility and
capacity to cope with risks and outcomes (OECD, 2008). Children and the elderly are
more at risk than other population groups. Subjects with pre-existing cardiovascular and
respiratory disease have also been reported to be more susceptible to health impact
from ambient.
The water resources of China are affected by both severe water quantity shortages and
severe water quality pollution. An increasing population and rapid economic growth as
well as lax environmental oversight have increased water demand and pollution.
3.1.10 Security
Security is a fundamental component of well-being that involves safety and protection

from harm. It also involves individual and community perceptions of safety, which can
be just as important to well-being as the experience of harm or threats of harm.
For a country under so many social stresses, with millions of rural migrants pouring
every year into cities and a widening gap between rich and poor, China boasts a
remarkable achievement: a sharp fall since the turn of the century in murders and gun
crimes. Official surveys suggest citizens feel increasingly safe from violence.
49
The most common criminal incidents are minor petty crimes. Pick pocketing on public
transportation, at shopping areas, and at tourist sites is quite common. Thieves also
commonly target cell phones, Blackberries, cameras, and high value items. At tourist
sites, thieves are generally more interested in cash and will immediately abandon credit
cards. In shopping areas, both cash and credit cards are sought.
Police response for foreign victims of crime depends upon the type of infraction, where
it transpired, and the social status of the victim (private citizen, diplomat, VIP, etc.).
Urban forces in Beijing and other first-tier cities are better trained and equipped than in
other locales because authorities spend millions of dollars on security-related
infrastructure. Local police are semi-effective at deterring crime; most responses to
alarms/emergency calls are sufficiently prompt if the police are informed that the victim
is a Westerner or person of importance. In some cases, local police authorities will serve
as a mediator between the victim and criminal to agree upon financial compensation
(sometimes in lieu of jail time).
criminal incidents
Men are far more likely than women to be victim of violent crime, with the exception of
intimate killings and sex-related homicides. In the case of less extreme forms of crimes,
socio-economic inequality (measured in terms of wages and education) seems to play a
central role in the occurrence of criminal victimization. Disadvantaged people are likely
to live in neighbourhoods with high criminality and to lack the resources enabling them
to protect themselves against crimes and assaults (Kelly, 2000).
50
Question 3
ANALYSE THE PRESENCE OF PEOPLE LIVING IN

THIS COUNTRY WHO ARE DISADVANTAGED OR
MARGINALIZED
4
4.1 The Marginalized Ethnic Groups in China
In China, equality among ethnic groups means that regardless of their population size,
their level of economic and social development, the difference of their folkways,
customs and religious beliefs, every ethnic group is a part of the Chinese nation, having
equal status, enjoying the same rights and performing the same duties in every aspect
of political and social life according to law, and ethnic oppression or discrimination of
any form is firmly opposed. Unity among ethnic groups means a relationship of
harmony, friendship, mutual assistance and alliance among ethnic groups in social life
and mutual contacts.
Location of Ethnic Group in China
54
On the other hand, discrimination towards minority groups in China has existed in
society for decades, and though in recent years these negative attitudes have declined,
many barriers and disadvantages still exist for those who belong to different cultures.
Ethnic tensions in China, have persisted since the founding of the Peoples Republic
(PRC) in 1949 and have been exacerbated in the last three decades.
According to (BBC, 2013) stated that, the ethnic groups that are clearly marginalized in
China is Uighur or “Han Minority” in Xinjiang province . Moreover, ethnic group Han
Chinese is the major ethnic group in China and live with low discrimination. The major
factors of ethnic discrimination are because of religion and language.
4.1.1 Xinjiang Profile Overview
Territory Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous Region

Status Region of China
Population 19,630,000 (2000 Chinese census)
Major Ethnic Uighur (45%) and Han (40.0%)
Capital Urumqi
Area 1,660,001 sq km (640,930 sq miles)
Major Languages Chinese, Uighur
Major Religion Islam
Main Export Oil, agricultural produce
China's Xinjiang province is the country's most westerly region, bordering on the former
Soviet states of Central Asia, as well as several other states including Afghanistan,
Russia, and Mongolia. The largest ethnic group, the Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uighurs,
has lived in China's shadow for centuries. The region has had an intermittent history of
autonomy and occasional independence, but was finally brought under Chinese control
in the 18th century.
Economic development of the region under Communist rule has been accompanied by
large-scale immigration of Han Chinese, and Uighur allegations of discrimination and
marginalisation have been behind more visible anti-Han and separatist sentiment since
the 1990s. This has flared into violence on occasion.
55
Xinjiang Province
The economy of this once agricultural region has developed fast since 1949, and oil and
petrochemicals now account for about 60 per cent of its GDP. It is also an important
trade and pipeline route into Central Asia and beyond. The region was contested by
various Turkic groups, Mongols and the Chinese until the 18th century, when the
Chinese Qing Dynasty brought the whole area under its control.
Panorama of Urumqi
Russia's conquest of the neighbouring Central Asian states of Kokand and Bukhara led to
a renewed struggle for control over the area, with the Kokand general Yaqub Bek
establishing a de facto independent state in Kashgar in 1865. China gradually regained
56
control of the region and formally set up Xinjiang Province in 1884. Russian influence
remained strong, especially during the rule of various warlords after the fall of the Qing
Dynasty in 1912. The Soviet Union supported an Uighur-led separatist East Turkestan
Republic in the north of the region in 1944-1949, but helped to extinguish it when the
Communists took over in China proper.
Communist China established the Autonomous Region in 1955, and began to encourage
Han Chinese to settle there in new industrial towns and farming villages run by the
quasi-military Xinjiang Production and Development Corps. China also set up its nuclear
testing facility at Lop Nur in the Tarim Basin, conducting the first test there in 1964. In
the 2000 census Han Chinese made up 40 per cent of the population of Xinjiang,
excluding large numbers of troops stationed in the region and unknown numbers of
unregistered migrants, and Uighurs accounted for about 45 per cent.
4.1.2 Uighur Ethnic Group
The Uighurs are Muslims who are predominantly based in north-western China's
Xinjiang region, although there are Uighur communities in most big Chinese cities. T heir
language is related to Turkish and they regard themselves as culturally and ethnically
closer to Central Asia than the rest of China. Xinjiang's economy has for centuries
revolved around agriculture and trade, with towns such as Kashgar thriving as hubs
along the famous Silk Road.
Uighurs Ethnic
57
In the early part of the 20th Century, the Uighurs briefly declared independence, but the
region was brought under the control of communist China in 1949. Xinjiang is officially
described as an autonomous region, like Tibet. In recent decades there has been
increasing Han Chinese migration to the region and many Uighurs complain of
discrimination. Han Chinese make up roughly 40% of Xinjiang's population, while about
45% are Uighurs.
Urumqi's population of about 2.3 million is now majority Han. Some Uighurs support the
notion of an independent state and there have been a number of bombings and some
attacks on security forces. Chinese authorities say the Xinjiang separatists are terrorists
with links to al-Qaeda and receiving support from outside the country.
But campaigners accuse China of exaggerating the threat to justify tough security
clampdowns in the region. The worst unrest in decades came in July, with 156 people
reported killed after a protest in the region's capital, Urumqi, turned violent.
4.2 Comparing Ethnic Minority and Han Chinese in China
A nationwide survey in 2008 demonstrates that ethnic minorities do have grievances

and feel economically disadvantaged. Minority groups are more psychologically
alienated from the political regime and less likely to believe that the government is
responsive to their needs. They trust the government less than the Han, and in general
are less likely than the Han to identify themselves as “Chinese.”
Besides the majority Han Chinese (91.5% of the population), the government recognises
55 other nationalities or ethnic groups, including Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uyghur,
Tujia, Yi, Mongol and Tibetan, concentrated mostly in the central and western
provinces. Most of the groups have their own languages and religion, such as Islam,
Buddhism and Taoism.
Among these group of minorities, the Uyghurs, exhibit great capacity for organised
resistance against the government. Some of their leaders are even capable of mobilising
resources for independence movements from within or outside China. One of the major
reasons for ethnic conflicts is ‘grievance’, a feeling of suffering from unfair treatments,
58
such as income inequality, lack of political rights, cultural discrimination etc. Academic
research has revealed that the grievances of minorities underlie the violence in Tibet
and Xinjiang.
It is vital for a multi-ethnic society to close the gaps among different ethnicities in terms
of their political attitudes. Whether the Chinese government can hold these groups with
different languages, beliefs and cultures together largely depends on whether the ethnic
minorities share a common national identity with the Han Chinese. Experiences of other
countries, such as Singapore and the United States, demonstrate that racial harmony
can only be achieved when all ethnic groups in the society have some common
identities and shared attitudes towards the existing political system.
In a nationwide survey of citizen attitudes by Asian Barometer Survey (ABS), Chinese

citizens were asked about their satisfaction with their daily life, their interest in public
issues, their evaluation of economic wellbeing in the past five years, and so forth. While
the survey was conducted between December 2007 and May 2008 with a small number
of cases collected in November and December of 2008, it throws light on the current
state of the minorities.
The data show that Uighurs/ethnic minorities in China do have grievances and they feel
politically disadvantaged in comparison with the Han majority. In general minorities are
significantly less satisfied with their life and feel less happy than their Han neighbours.
Economically, while all Chinese people feel better off than five years earlier, ethnic
minorities believe they gain lesser in terms of welfare than the Han group. Han Chinese
has a higher level of interest in political issues while minorities in the west are most
indifferent to politics. Generally, ethnic minorities feel competent in understanding and
participating in public affairs, but again those in the west have the lowest level of such
sense of capacity.
Uighurs/minority groups and the Han Chinese also differ in their perception of the
Chinese government. Minorities are less likely to believe that the government is
responsive to their demands and needs. And the government is less trustworthy to
them than to the Han people. Minority citizens in central and western provinces prefer a
more speedy reform of the political institutions, which somehow reflects their
59
discontentment with the existing regime. Consequently, minority citizens are less likely
than the Han to identify themselves as ‘Chinese’, especially so in the central and
western provinces, where most Uighurs live.
Implications for Chinese policy makers are clear. The government will do well to change
the disadvantaged status of minorities. Substantial efforts need to be taken to reduce
income inequalities and improve life satisfaction of minorities. It is also crucial to
enhance minority citizens’ psychological involvement in the national political system by
improving their perception of participation capacity and governmental responsiveness.
In the long term Chinese decision makers should make it their central task to promote
the Chinese identity of minority groups. It is only when non-Han groups and the Han
have more political opinions in common and a common national identity can they live
harmoniously and peacefully in a multi-ethnic China.
60
Question 4
WHAT ARE THE MAIN CAUSES OF LACK OF

WELL-BEING FOR SUCH GROUP(S) OF PEOPLE IN
THIS COUNTRY?
5
5.1 The Main Causes of Lack of Well-Being for Uighur Ethnic in Xinjiang
According to (Wikipedia, 2014), the definition of ethnic discrimination is the unequal

treatment of people based on the fact that they belong to a certain ethnic or national
group. Ethnic discrimination can also involve placing a person in a different position on
the basis of religion, skin colour, language or nationality. Besides unequal treatment,
discrimination is also the creation of an intimidating, hostile, humiliating or offensive
environment, and the instruction or order to discriminate.
The causes of ethnic issues in China are complex and arise from the influences of
Chinese history, Chinese nationalism, and many other factors and causes. Ethnic issues
have driven multiple Chinese historical movements, including Red Turban Rebellion —
which targeted Mongol leaderships of the Yuan Dynasty — as well as in the Xinhai
Revolution which overthrew the Manchus, Qing Dynasty.
Uighur Peoples
Some ethnic groups are more distinguishable due to physical appearances and relatively
low intermarriage rates. Many others have intermarriage with Han Chinese, and have
similar appearances. They are therefore less distinguishable from Han Chinese people,
especially because a growing number of ethnic minorities are fluent at a native level in
Mandarin Chinese. In addition, children often adopts "ethnic minority status" at birth if
one of their parents is an ethnic minority, even though their ancestry is overwhelmingly
Han Chinese.
61
5.1.1 Immediate Causes
Conversely, some Han Chinese opponents of the movement are unhappy at being, in
their perspective, treated as second-class citizens by PRC policies, in which many of the
ethnic autonomy policies are discriminatory against them (see Autonomous entities of
China). Some go so far as to posit that since previous Chinese dynasties owned Xinjiang
before the Uyghur Empire, the region belongs to them as opposed to the Uyghurs.
Supporters of the movement, on the other hand, have labelled Chinese rule in Xinjiang,
as Chinese imperialism.
Uyghur nationalist historians such as Turghun Almas claim that Uyghurs were distinct
and independent from Chinese for 6000 years, and that all non-Uyghur peoples are non-
indigenous immigrants to Xinjiang. However, the Han Dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE)
established military colonies (tuntian) and commanderies (duhufu) to control Xinjiang
from 120 BCE, while the Tang Dynasty (618-907) also controlled much of Xinjiang until
the An Lushan rebellion. Chinese historians refute Uyghur nationalist claims by pointing
out the 2000-year history of Han settlement in Xinjiang, documenting the history of
Mongol, Kazakh, Uzbek, Manchu, Hui, Xibo indigenes in Xinjiang, and by emphasizing
the relatively late "westward migration" of the Huigu (equated with "Uyghur" by the
PRC government) people from Mongolia the 9th century. The name "Uyghur" was
associated with a Buddhist people in the Tarim Basin in the 9th century, but completely
disappeared by the 15th century, until it was revived by the Soviet Union in the 20th
century.
62
Uyghur nationalists often incorrectly claim that 5% of Xinjiang's population in 1949 was
Han, and that the other 95% was Uyghur, erasing the presence of Kazakhs, Huis,
Mongols, Xibes and others, and ignoring the fact that Hans were around one third of
Xinjiang's population in 1800, during the time of the Qing Dynasty. Foreigners often
mistakenly think that Urumqi was originally a Uyghur city and that the Chinese
destroyed its Uyghur character and culture, however, Urumqi was founded as a Chinese
city by Han and Hui (Tungans), and it is the Uyghurs who are new to the city. Han and
Hui mostly live in northern Xinjiang (Dzungaria), and are separated from areas of
historical Uyghur dominance south of the Tian Shan mountains (the Tarim Basin in
southwestern Xinjiang), where Uyghurs account for about 90% of the population.
At the start of the 19th century, 40 years after the Qing reconquest, there were around
155,000 Han and Hui Chinese in northern Xinjiang and somewhat more than twice that
number of Uyghurs in southern Xinjiang. A census of Xinjiang under Qing rule in the
early 19th century tabulated ethnic shares of the population as 30% Han and 60%
Turkic, while it dramatically shifted to 6% Han and 75% Uyghur in the 1953 census,
however a situation similar to the Qing era-demographics with a large number of Han
has been restored as of 2000 with 40.57% Han and 45.21% Uyghur. Before 1831, only a
few hundred Chinese merchants lived in southern Xinjiang oases (Tarim Basin) and only
a few Uyghurs lived in northern Xinjiang (Dzungaria).
5.1.2 Current Factors of Lack of Social Well-Being in Xinjiang
a. Changing Society under Fast Modernisation
Since Deng Xiaoping carried out reform and opening up policy in 1978, China has
undergone a fast modernization process. In particular, China has maintained near
double-digit economic growth for two decades up until 2011. China's fast modernization
also exhibits in its rapid urbanization development. China was doubled its urbanization
level from 25.8% in 1989 to 51.8% in 2012, and Xinjiang likewise exhibits a similar trend
in strong economic growth and rapid urbanization development in recent years. This
indicates that the Chinese society as well as Xinjiang has both gone through dramatic
changes that engender many social problems.
63
According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the criminal cases in China have
quadrupled from 1.62 million in 1995 to 6.55 million in 2012, suggesting the increase of
social problems of all kinds. However, if we consider serious criminal cases (such as
homicide, criminal injury, robbery, rape, kidnapping), this upward trend is far less
obvious. This raises a doubt about whether the growth of social problems did bring
major security hazards as we saw in Xinjiang. Domestic statistics indicate that Xinjiang
had a higher homicide rate than other provinces in China. This evidence provides some
support to the explanation that the recent unrest in Xinjiang is associated with
burgeoning social problems in the changing society under China's fast modernization.
b. China's Western Development
Another factor that has contributed to the growth lack of social well-being in Xinjiang is
the negative impact of China's Western Development. While Beijing's massive
investments in Xinjiang did greatly increase the GDP number, only few people enjoyed
the economic prosperity and many suffered from the resultant effects of
industrialisation and development. For instance, the growth of industrial and service
sectors did not contribute much to reducing the unemployment problem. Pollutions
caused serious environmental degradation over the quality of water, soil, and air, which
threatened agricultural production. Fast economic growth pushed commodity prices to
soar and that lowered farmer's profit. Very little economic return, e.g. taxes or
compensation, was redistributed to people for improving their livelihood. Infrastructure
development facilitates large enterprises entering the markets and driving local
companies out of business. All of the aforementioned problems can be boiling down to
people's deteriorating living standard in contrast to deceptive economic booms. Popular
discontent and social grievance quickly accumulated.
The Uyghur population in China is over 10 million, and 80% of the population live in
southern Xinjiang. Most Uyghur people are peasants and have very limited education,
and thus, very few job opportunities are offered to them. While many large enterprises
come to Xinjiang for investment, most of them recruited their employees from other
provinces and only offered local residents a very limited amount of non-technical jobs.
The social disruption associated with land expropriation, rural underemployment,
corruption in the local government, and the sense of frustration regarding social
64
exclusion, racial prejudice, and cultural misunderstanding all intensify Uyghur's negative
perception about China's Western Development. The accrued anger translated into
enormous social grievance against the government and became the emotional thrust
that explains the motive of many recent incidents.
c. Regional Inequality
As Table 3 shows, among 31 administrative units in China, Xinjiang ranked 18th in terms
of GDP per capita in 2012, slightly lower than the national average by a margin of about
$700 USD. Compared to the four municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and
Chongqing) and south-eastern coastal provinces (Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and
Fujian), Xinjiang's level of economic development has apparently lagged behind.
Xinjiang Poverty and Nomad
However, Xinjiang did not perform the worst, either. There were 13 administrative units
trailing behind Xinjiang and although some provinces do have a better natural
environment, they did not outperform Xinjiang. If we evaluate the problem of regional
inequality only based on provincial-level statistics, Xinjiang's socioeconomic condition is
rather closer to the average group than to the inferior group. Examining the GDP
statistics of 20 prefecture-level administrative units in Xinjiang, it found a great level of
intra-provincial variance. On one hand, the heartland of Uyghur areas such as Hotan,
Kizilsu Kirghiz, and Kashgar actually suffer from extreme underdevelopment and have
the poorest economic condition even trailing the worst provincial case Guizhou for
about $1000 to $2000 USD.
65
In fact, regional inequality between northern and southern Xinjiang are drastic: northern
Xnijiang has only 1/3 of land area and 54% population but its fixed asset investment
accounts to 74.8%, GDP accounts to 76%, and industrial production accounts to 78.8%.
All these numbers illustrate an astonishing fact that the majority of Han people reside in
northern Xinjiang and enjoy far better living conditions than the majority of their Uyghur
counterparts in southern Xinjiang.
d. The Rise of Islamic Activism
The prevalent religious atmosphere has bought two important political consequences.
First, in response to the possible security hazard, Beijing adopts the full-scale security
measures to maintain social stability. Many of them are perceived very repressive and
disrespectful to the Muslim population, e.g. banning regular religious activities,
forbidding full-face veil, forcing to join the communist party, and abusing coercive
power.
Muslim Population
Second, the rigid security measures provoke strong backlash and lead to the rise of
Islamic activism against Beijing' rule. Incidents of spontaneous ‘violence’ highlight the
fiercest reaction against official implementation of the urban grid management system,
in which policemen, community workers, as well as local official’s team up to implement
strict social control and prevent any anti-governmental activities. Many of the recent
attacks broke out during the home visit when community workers or local officials
reported illegal religious gathering or possession of weapons to the police. Conflicts of
this nature recently become more intense because cases of retaliation also happen after
the police wipe out the underground organization by military means.
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Question 5
DO THESE ISSUES AND PROBLEMS STAND

ALONE OR ARE THEY INTERRELATED?
6
6.1 Do these Issues and Problems Stand Alone or Interrelated?
According to Aljazeera (2014) stated that, the lack of social wellbeing or social unrest
issue among Uyghur ethnic in Xinjiang is interrelated. The social multifaceted
explanation with five interrelated factors;
Interrelated Factors
1 China is a changing society due to its fast modernization process. The exponential
growth of social problems has already caused widespread security hazards. ‘Violent
attacks’ and extreme ‘terrorist activities’ have also largely increased over recent
times.
2 Dramatic social disruption under Beijing’s strategic policy of China’s Western
Development, which results in enormous social grievance against the government.
3 The inferior socioeconomic condition in the Uyghur areas (Southern Xinjiang)
engenders strong social discontent about regional inequality. Feelings of relative
deprivation not only strengths the ethnic Uyghur identity but also generates
adversarial orientation that resists Han rule.
4 Beijing's scale-up security measures have encountered strong resistance in the
majority Uyghur area. The rise of Islamic activism provokes many ‘violent incidents’
when strict social control is imposed.
Therefore, it suggesting that the recent Xinjiang unrest reflects the upsurge of social
problems of all kind in a fast-changing society with interest conflicts along the ethnic
cleavage, while the short-term causes are related to the rise of Islamic activism that
clashes with China's powerful security measures.
67
Question 6
DOES IT SEEM POSSIBLE FOR SUCH GROUP(S)

OF PEOPLE TO BE HAPPY?
7
7.1 Does it Seem Possible for Uyghur Ethnic in Xinjiang to be Happy?
Based on the problem of social well-being of Uyghur ethnic in Xinxiang, the possibility
for Uyghur ethnic in Xinxiang to be happy is high. This is because, the Information Office
of the State Council, or China's cabinet, published a white paper on the development
and progress in Xinjiang 2008 that was improved a lot of people's living standards and
promoting social well being. Having eliminated poverty and solved basic subsistence
problems, the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang have now set their eyes on more
prosperous lives, along with marked improvement in their standard of living.
7.1.1 Employment Rate
Employment has a vital bearing on people's livelihood. Over the years the Xinjiang
government has been committed to the implementation of proactive employment
policies and the promotion of employment growth through sustainable economic
development. The government has taken effective measures to increase job
opportunities and expand the scale of employment. In 2008, a total of 8,475,800 people
in Xinjiang were employed.
Uighurs Workers
The registered unemployment rate in urban areas was 3.7%. Since the implementation
of the western region development strategy, over 300,000 people in Xinjiang have been
employed or employed each year. Local human resources agencies have been set up
and on the increase; and market forces are playing a fundamental role in allocating
human resources. A public employment services system has taken shape, comprising of
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comprehensive services centers at county and district levels, grassroots-level services

posts in communities, townships and villages, along with other types of services entities.
In 2008, there were altogether 107 public services centers, with 3,944 employees
providing resident services and other services.
7.1.2 Personal Income
In 2008, the per-capita net income of farmers in Xinjiang was 3,503 yuan, which is 28
times more than that of 1978, and 1.2 times more than that of 2000 when the western
development campaign was launched; the per-capita disposable income of urban
residents reached 11,432 yuan, which is 35 times more than that of 1978, and double
that of 2001. The per-capita deposited savings of urban and rural residents averaged 14
yuan in 1955, 52 yuan in 1978, 4,913 yuan in 2000, and 11,972 yuan in 2008. Per-capita
consumption was 122 yuan in 1952, 181 yuan in 1978, 2,662 yuan in 2000, and 4,890
yuan in 2007.
The residents' income increases have become more diversified. In the countryside,
besides conventional crops such as grain and cotton, fruit trees have become a new
source of earnings for farmers and herders, bringing in 340 yuan per capita in 2008. In
places that had developed fruit growing earlier, earnings from selling fruit accounted for
more than 40% of the total income of farmers and herders. Another way to increase
earnings is seeking jobs elsewhere, particularly in eastern China. In 2008, more than 1.5
million farmers and herders found jobs outside Xinjiang, bringing back an additional 150
yuan per person for all rural residents. The development of tourism has promoted the
production and sales of tourist products with distinctive features of minority ethnic
groups, and the growth of local handicrafts, directly or indirectly producing hundreds of
thousands of jobs, and thus increasing household incomes.
7.1.3 Social Security
Xinjiang's social-security system has gradually taken shape, to provide basic living
guarantees for the people. Xinjiang has 799 community services facilities in urban areas.
About 9,645,700 people have taken part in the five major insurance programs, of basic
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pension insurance, unemployment insurance, medical insurance, industrial injury

insurance, and maternity insurance. A total of 638,000 urban residents are receiving the
minimum living allowance from the government. Social welfare institutions of various
types have 19,000 beds by the end of 2008, taking in 14,000 residents under their care.
From July 2007, the rural minimum living allowance system was introduced, providing
subsidies for farmers and herders with annual average per-capita income lower than
700 yuan. In 2008, 1,310,000 farmers and herders in extreme poverty received the
subsidies. By the end of 2007, medical aid services were available in every city, district
and county. In 2008 the government invested 310 million yuan in medical assistance
services for a total of 2,164,000 users, including 938,000 receiving medical services and
1,226,000 persons who have participated in medical insurance programs or cooperative
medical care programs.
7.1.4 Citizens' Rights of Freedom of Religious Belief
In Xinjiang, people of all ethnic groups fully enjoy the right of freedom in religious belief.
The people's freedom to believe in, or not to believe in, any religion is protected by the
law, and no state organ, public organization or individual may interfere with their
choice. By the end of 2008, the autonomous region had 24,800 venues for religious
activities, including mosques, churches and temples, in addition to over 29,000 clerical
personnel, 91 religious organizations and two religious colleges.
Xinjiang community; right of freedom and religion belief
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Since the 1980s, more than 50,000 people from Xinjiang have made pilgrimages to
Mecca in Saudi Arabia. In recent years, the number of people from Xinjiang who make
the pilgrimage each year has been around 2,700. By 2008, over 1,800 religious
personages in Xinjiang had been elected to posts in people's congresses and committees
of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at all levels. They have actively
participated in deliberation and administration of state affairs on behalf of religious
believers, and in exercising supervision over the government in respect to the
implementation of the policy of freedom of religious belief.
7.1.5 Education
Before the founding of the PRC in 1949, Xinjiang had but one college, nine secondary
schools and 1,355 primary schools. Only 19.8% of school-age children attended primary
school, and the overall illiteracy rate was a shocking 90%. Unprecedented changes have
taken place in education in Xinjiang after 1949. At present, Xinjiang has basically made
the nine-year compulsory education universal and eliminated illiteracy in the young and
middle-aged population. Adult and vocational education started from scratch, and has
been developing steadily.
Xinjiang School Student
In 2008, the government granted living subsidies to all underprivileged students who
live at school and exempted urban students from tuition fees during their compulsory
education period. Since 2007, the state has initiated an annual budget of 129 million
yuan for the education of 51,000 very poor university students and 95,000 secondary
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and higher vocational school students, 70% of whom come from ethnic minorities. In
2008, the Xinjiang autonomous region government invested a total of 18.77 billion yuan
in the region's education system, representing a year-on-year increase of 32.3%.
Statistics from that year show that Xinjiang had 4,159 primary schools with 2,012,000
students, and a 99.6% enrollment rate for school-age children. There were 1,973
secondary schools with 1,722,000 students, and 32 institutions of higher learning with
241,000 undergraduate and 10,300 graduate students in total.
The state gives priority to education for ethnic minorities and has enacted special
policies to support its development. The state is committed to the cultivation of high-
caliber professionals from minority backgrounds, sending promising students for
overseas studies and through programs such as Specialized Training for Xinjiang
Minority Sci-Tech Personnel and the High-Level Minority Talents Program. To develop
education for ethnic minorities, it encourages the use of minority languages in
classroom teaching. For ethnic groups with their own written languages in Xinjiang,
school education is conducted in their own languages.
7.1.6 Health
By 2008, Xinjiang had altogether 7,238 medical service centers, including 1,629 hospitals
with a total of 93,600 beds, and 43,800 doctors. That means 36 hospital beds and 21
doctors for every 10,000 people. Health and epidemic prevention institutions have been
established out of nothing, and a systematic urban and rural health and disease-control
network has been formed. Local disease control and prevention capabilities have greatly
improved; some endemic diseases, such as smallpox, have been eradicated, and the
incidence of other endemic and epidemic diseases has been significantly reduced.
The improvement of healthcare services has greatly improved people's health

conditions and quality of life. According to 2008 statistics, the general mortality rate was
4.88 for every 1,000 persons, and infant mortality was 29.76 per 1,000 births. The
population's average life expectancy has reached 72 years. Health services in farming
and pastoral areas have significantly improved, and a three-tier disease-prevention and
healthcare network has been established in counties, townships and villages. Xinjiang
implemented the new rural cooperative medical care system in 2003, and 89 cities and
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counties, or 94.6% of the rural areas, were included in the system by 2008, covering
10,059,000 farmers and herders, and those who actually participated in the program
were 9,503,000, or 94.5% of the population covered by the program.
7.1.7 Housing
Construction on government-subsidized housing picked up speed. Last year government

basically completed work on 5.44 million government-subsidized housing units in urban
areas and rural area and also began construction on an additional 6.66 million units,
with both numbers exceeding the planned figure.
Quake proof housing in Southern Xinjiang
Over the period from 1978 to 2008, Xinjiang's impoverished population decreased from
5.32 million to 2.53 million, and their living and working conditions have been
significantly improved. In recent years the state has put more efforts into poverty-
alleviation in southern Xinjiang, where the situation is the most severe. From 2001 to
2007, 78% of the central and local governments' poverty-alleviation funds, work-relief
subsidies and subsidized loans were invested in southern Xinjiang, where 70% of the
total poverty-alleviation programs were based.
Since 2004, earthquake-resistant housing programs have been carried out in quake-
prone areas, a six-year plan to provide safe housing for people in these areas. The state
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invested 41.2 billion yuan in these programs by the end of 2008, constructing and
fortifying 1,895,000 houses. In southern Xinjiang, 742,300 impoverished farming families
have since moved into quakeproof housing.
7.1.8 Ethnic Inequalities
Recognizing the existence of each ethnic group and guaranteeing its equal rights in
every aspect is the fundamental principle and policy of the Chinese government to
handle ethnic problems. It is also the foundation of all other policies concerning the
ethnic issue. The Constitution of the PRC stipulates: "All ethnic groups in the People's
Republic of China are equal. The state protects the lawful rights and interests of ethnic
minorities, and upholds and develops the relationship of equality, unity and mutual
assistance among all of China's peoples. Discrimination against and oppression of any
ethnic group is prohibited; any acts that undermine national unity or instigate secession
are prohibited." In Xinjiang, citizens of every ethnic group enjoy the rights prescribed by
the Constitution and laws, including freedom of religious belief, and rights to vote and
stand for election, to equally administer state affairs, to receive education, to use and
develop their own spoken and written languages, and to preserve and advance the
traditional culture of their own peoples.
Xinjiang peoples; anti discrimination
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As a summary, it has become clearer for the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang that
national unification, ethnic unity, social stability, plus the coexistence and development
in harmony of all peoples who share weal and woe are the lifeblood for the region's
development and progress. The people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang cherish dearly this
hard-earned remarkable situation and possibility to be happy was high. They will keep
taking economic construction as the core, while safeguarding social stability and
working together with the people of all ethnic groups in China to strive for common
prosperity. They will share in a common destiny, consolidate and develop socialist
ethnic relations characterized by equality, unity, mutual assistance and harmony, to
unremittingly advance Xinjiang's development.
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Question 7
WHAT WOULD BE THE MAIN DETERMINANT OF

STABILITY FOR A COUNTRY TO ENSURE THE
WELL-BEING OF ITS CITIZENS?
8
8.1 The Main Determinant of Stability for a Country to Ensure the Well-Being of its
Citizens
The main determinant of stability for China to ensure the well-being of its citizens is
China's Government via its policies and Plan. Social and economic changes are
transforming rural and regional communities. The Chinese Government acknowledges
that all national governments should undertake a major responsibility in promoting
social development and well being, and the energetic participation of the civil
community including the non-governmental organizations should be encouraged and
fostered. Based on the report of the Implementation of 2013 Plan for National Economic
and Social Development and on the 2014 Draft Plan for National Economic and Social
Development, it was improved at the certain of social development and social well
indicator among china’s citizens.
Government
Organization
Community
Individual
The main determinant of stability for China
Non-government organisations (NGOs) in China are increasingly becoming an important

factor in the changing social landscape. From a macro-perspective, NGOs have a strong
potential to improve and widen the space for Chinese citizens to engage in the human
and social development of the nation. Charged with such an important responsibility, it
is thus necessary to consider the broader issues of good governance and accountability
of NGOs operating in China. Such considerations may seem premature at this stage
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given that the history of the NGO sector in China is relatively young. However, such
issues cannot be dismissed or ignored when NGOs in the nation are slowly becoming
major actors in addressing certain key institutional gaps in policy and practice.
The Chinese state views NGOs as aiding the delivery of social services such as education
(eg, assisting in meeting the “Education For All” objectives), health care (eg, promoting
HIV/AIDS awareness), and environmental protection (eg, recycling). NGOs are seen as
gap fillers due to the decreasing ability and capacity of the state to provide welfare to
many of its citizens.
8.2 Pro-Poor Development and Building Capacity in China
China's government is increasing its investment in rural areas, especially in

infrastructure, irrigation, education and health. It is also introducing supportive policies,
including agricultural tax exemptions; subsidies for agricultural production and
increased agricultural procurement prices; and expansion of social protection and social
security coverage. Such investments aim to create a balanced, prosperous society
through economic and social development.
The government's 12th Five-Year Plan was approved in March 2011. It calls for
harmonized growth allowing poor communities to benefit substantially from the
country's impressive economic and social development. The government has pledged
increased investments in support of economic development in poor rural areas.
However, China still faces an uphill task in reducing poverty. The government's current
ten-year (2011-2020) rural poverty reduction and development programme recognizes
rural poverty as a long-term challenge – especially in border regions, areas inhabited by
ethnic minority groups, and former revolutionary bases that were settled from the
1920s through the 1940s in remote, mountainous locations. The government is
committed to formulating and implementing strategic policies and efficient mechanisms
that will help achieve its objectives of eliminating absolute poverty and substantially
reducing relative poverty by 2020.
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Government policy in China stresses the principle of development-driven poverty

reduction. This approach combines social assistance with sectoral development,
optimizing the roles and functions of central and local governments, extending support
to vulnerable groups previously designated as ‘low-income' rather than ‘poor' and
continuing to fund poverty-reduction initiatives.
Focus areas for rural development include:
i. Strengthening the capacity of poor people and improving their asset base
ii. Improving community-level infrastructure, facilities and services
iii. Ensuring that rural per capita net incomes grow faster than the national average
iv. Further extending and improving the social safety net for poor rural people
v. Gradually improving the health and living standards of the poor in general.
8.2.1 Income and Wealth
Pro-poor Development
Building Capacity ActionAid China is an association aiming to eradicate poverty and
injustice in China in collaboration with institutions and non-
governmental institutions. ActionAid has established 14 Development
Areas (DA) in 14 counties of 5 provinces in China, working with rural
people in 186 villages in 40 townships, thus creating intensive
connections in order to alleviate poverty and promote productivity. It
is estimated that 150 000 women, children and poor farmers have
benefited from the organisation directly or indirectly.
Current Result Personal income increased. Urban per capita disposable income rose
by 7% in real terms and rural per capita net income increased by 9.3%
in real terms. Rural income growth surpassed urban income growth
for the fourth consecutive year, the number of rural residents living in
poverty decreased by 16.5 million, and the gap between urban and
rural incomes continued to narrow.
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8.2.2 Job and Earning
Building Capacity Government vigorously develop modern agriculture with distinctive
features and rural secondary and tertiary industries, particularly the
processing of farm products. Development of rural enterprises and
small cities and towns was accelerated. Government continue to run
projects to develop model towns to demonstrate comprehensive
economic development. Government was strengthen local economies
of counties. Goverment increase vocational education and technical
training in rural areas to make it easier for rural residents to find non-
farm jobs. State policies was implemented to protect the legitimate
rights and interests of rural migrant workers in cities, and those who
return home will be encouraged to find jobs or start their own
businesses in their hometowns.
Current Result Employment remained stable on the whole. An additional 13.1 million
urban jobs were created, and the urban registered unemployment
rate stood at 4.05% at the end of 2013, exceeding expected targets.
The policy for supporting college graduates in finding jobs or starting
their own businesses was satisfactorily implemented, the
employment assistance system for people having difficulty finding
jobs was improved, and public employment service facilities
continued to improve.
8.2.3 Housing
Building Capacity China's central government plans to spend 115.8 billion yuan ($18.8
billion) on affordable housing. The special fund includes subsidies for
low-rent housing, public rental departments and shanty-town
renovation. The figure is an increase of 14.3 percent from the money
channelled to those programs previously. Subsidized housing
programs have been high on the government agenda in recent years
as skyrocketing home prices in major cities have pushed many out of
the market. The government work report released is pledged to
improve the affordable housing system and set a target to begin
construction on more than seven million units, including 4.7 million
for people living in shanty shelters.
Current Result Most of people can buy their own house with affordable price in rural
area also in the city. People in China now enjoy larger living space. In
the early 1990s, per capita floor space in cities and towns was a mere
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6.7 square meters, and 17.8 square meters for those in the
countryside. Now that figure has increased above 10 square meters in
cities and towns, and 25 square meters in the countryside. Also,
people live more comfortably than before with better decoration,
furniture and domestic appliances.
8.2.4 Health Status
Building Capacity Government strengthened the development of the public health
services system, the medical services system, the family planning
services system, centres for training general practitioners, and
programs to make medical and health care services information-
based. Government increased annual per capita spending on basic
public health services from 25 yuan to 30 yuan. Hospitals and health
care institutions had 4.55 beds per 1,000 people, up 7.3%.
Current Result Medical and health care services systems continued to improve. The
natural population growth rate was 4.92 per thousand, which met the
planned target.
8.2.6 Education and Skills
Building Capacity Education developed steadily. Government continued to promote
preschool education in rural areas, intensified the standardization of
compulsory education schools, and steadily improved the basic
conditions of poorly built and run schools providing compulsory
education in poor areas. Government effectively implemented the
policy to grant children who live in urban areas with their rural
migrant worker parents the same eligibility to go to secondary school
or college as local students after receiving compulsory education.
Current Result The ratio of rural students admitted to key colleges and universities is
on the increase. The retention rate of nine-year compulsory
education was 92.3%, up 0.5 percentage points over the previous
year; the gross enrolment ratio for senior secondary education
reached 86%, up one percentage point; and regular undergraduate
and graduate enrolment totalled 6.998 million and 779,000,
respectively, including 611,000 full-time graduates.
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8.2.7 Personal Security
Building Capacity social security coverage expanded. Government accelerated the
coordination of basic old-age insurance and basic medical insurance
in urban and rural areas in an overall manner, further standardized
the subsistence allowance systems for urban and rural residents, and
established temporary assistance systems in 26 provincial-level
administrative areas. Government improved the mechanism that
increases social assistance and social security benefits to offset the
effects of inflation.
Current Result By the end of 2013, 346 million urban residents had joined the basic
old-age insurance system, and 474 million rural residents had joined
the new type of rural old-age insurance system, an increase of 20.83
million and 10.82 million, respectively. Basic old-age pensions for
enterprise retirees increased by 10%. Annual government subsidies
for basic medical insurance for non-working urban residents and the
new rural cooperative medical care system were raised from 240
yuan to 280 yuan per person.
8.2.8 Inequality Among Ethnic Group
Building Capacity The Chinese government has always maintained that equality among
ethnic groups is the precondition and basis for unity among ethnic
groups, that the latter cannot be achieved without the former, that
the latter is the logical outcome of the former and a guarantee for
promoting ethnic equality in its true sense. Equality and unity among
ethnic groups as the basic principle and policy for resolving ethnic
problems have been clearly defined in the Constitution and relevant
laws. To achieve these goals, the priority of development will be given
to improving the livelihood of all ethnic groups. Previous government
investment has mostly gone to infrastructure or heavy industries,
which not only benefited local ethnic minorities very little, but also
enlarged the income gap between Han and other groups.
Current Result A favorable social environment has been created for ethnic groups to
treat each other on an equal footing and to develop a relationship of
unity, harmony, friendship and mutual assistance among them.
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8.3 Public Participation Among Ethnic Minorities in China
Public participation is the process by which an organization consults with interested or

affected individuals, organizations, and government entities before making a decision
(Davies, 2001). Public participation is two-way communication and collaborative
problem solving with the goal of achieving better and more acceptable decisions.
The Constitution of the People's Republic of China stipulates: "All ethnic groups in the
People's Republic of China are equal. The state protects the lawful rights and interests
of the ethnic minorities and upholds and develops a relationship of equality, unity and
mutual assistance among all of China's ethnic groups. Discrimination against and
oppression of any ethnic group are prohibited.'' Citizens of all ethnic groups in China
enjoy all equal rights accorded to citizens by the Constitution and law.
For instance, they have the rights to vote and stand for election, regardless of ethnic
status, race and religious belief; their personal freedom and dignity are inviolable; they
enjoy freedom of religious belief; they have the right to receive education; they have
the right to use and develop their own spoken and written languages; they enjoy
freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession and of
demonstration; they have the right to engage in scientific research, literary and artistic
creation and other cultural pursuits; they have the right to work and rest, and the right
to material assistance from the state and society when they are disabled; they have the
right to criticize and make suggestions regarding any state organ or functionary; and
they have the freedom to preserve or change their own folkways and customs.
The Chinese government has adopted special policies and measures to effectively
realize and guarantee the right to equality among all ethnic groups, which is prescribed
by the Constitution and law, in social life and government activities. As a result, a
favorable social environment has been created for ethnic groups to treat each other on
an equal footing and to develop a relationship of unity, harmony, friendship and mutual
assistance among them.
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8.3.1 All Ethnic Groups Participate in State Affairs Administration on an Equal Footing
In accordance with the provisions of the Electoral Law of the National People's Congress
and Local People's Congresses of the People's Republic of China, the minority peoples
shall have their own deputies to sit in the NPC, and the ethnic groups whose population
is less than that prescribed for electing one deputy are permitted to elect one deputy.
From the first session of the First NPC, held in 1954, to the present day, the proportions
of deputies of ethnic minorities among the total number of deputies in every NPC have
been higher than the proportions of their populations in the nation's total population in
the corresponding periods. Of 2,979 deputies elected in 1998 to the Ninth NPC, 428
deputies were from ethnic minority, accounting for 14.37 percent of the total, which
was about five percentage points higher than the proportion of their total population in
the nation's total population at that time.
The areas where ethnic minorities live in concentrated communities, each of them may
have its own deputy or deputies sit in the local people's congresses. Ethnic minorities
living in scattered groups may also elect their own deputies to the local people's
congresses and the number of people represented by each of their deputies may be less
than the number of people represented by each of the other deputies to such
congresses.
The state has made great efforts to train ethnic minority cadres and enlist their service.
To date, there are well over 2,700,000 minority cadres throughout the country. The
ethnic minorities also have a fairly large appropriate number of personnel working in
the central and local state organs, administrative organs, judicial organs and
procuratorial organs, taking part in the management of national and local affairs. Today,
among the vice-chairpersons of the Standing Committee of the NPC, those of ethnic
minority origin account for 21 percent; among the vice chairpersons of the National
Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), those of
ethnic minority origin account for 9.6 percent; of the leading members of the State
Council, one is of ethnic minority origin; among the leaders of the component
departments of the State Council, two ministers are from ethnic minority groups; and
the heads of the governments of the 155 ethnic autonomous regions, prefectures and
counties (or banners) are all from ethnic minority groups.
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8.4 The Major Targets and Policies for Economic and Social Development in 2014
The year 2014 is the first year for implementing the decision of the CPC Central
Committee to comprehensively deepen reform and a crucial year for fulfilling the
targets and tasks set in the Twelfth Five-Year Plan. Government need to thoroughly
implement the guiding principles of the Eighteenth National Party Congress and the
second and third plenary sessions of the Eighteenth CPC Central Committee, accord with
the policy decisions and arrangements of the Central Committee and the State Council,
adhere to the general work principle of making progress while maintaining stability,
carry out reform and innovation in all areas of economic and social development,
maintain continuity and stability in our macroeconomic policy, strive to invigorate the
market, accelerate the shift in the growth model and structural adjustment, intensify
development of the basic public services system, work hard to ensure and improve
people's wellbeing, genuinely raise the quality and returns of economic development,
and promote sustained, sound economic growth and social harmony and stability.
The Major target is to giving high priority to improving people's wellbeing. More than
ten million urban jobs will be added this year; the registered urban unemployment rate
will be kept under 4.6%, and the survey-based unemployment rate in large cities will be
kept at an appropriate level. Both urban and rural incomes will increase basically in step
with economic growth. The social security system will be improved. Basic public services
will be made more equally available.
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The natural population growth rate will be kept under 6.5 per thousand. Work on 4.8
million government-subsidized housing units will be basically completed in urban areas,
and construction will begin on an additional seven million-plus units. This year' s target
for urban job creation is one million more than last year mainly to better meet the
needs of the urban workforce entering the job market for the first time and to respond
to the fact that employment pressure will be considerable because more students will
graduate from college this year. At the same time, government have the conditions to
meet this target because as the GDP base increases and service sector growth speeds
up, more jobs will be created with every percentage point growth in GDP.
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RECOMMENDATION
11
9.1 Recommendation
Different layers of the society have different demands, thus every individual‟s feeling of
happiness is not exactly the same. Because of the divergence in preferences, people
with various incomes will make different contributions to the good social well being and
happiness index. In this way, when carrying out a new policy, government may take all
kinds of people‟s needs into consideration, try to ensure the maximum utility of
residents. Considering the actual situation in China, the vast majority of population are
middle and lower income workers, farmers, and unemployed; their living standard
determines the overall level of happiness in society. Therefore, it is very urgent and of
great importance to design proper policies to enhance these people‟s happiness level.
9.1.1 Guide sustainable and stable development of economics
Security, marriage, communication, self-fulfillment, etc can never be achieved without

the support of certain material base. Only when income satisfies people’s basic needs;
safety, health, attitude, environment and other non-material factors can show a greater
impact on good social well being and happiness. Therefore, although income is not a
sufficient condition of happiness, it is a necessary condition of happiness. In fact,
empirical analysis we talked above confirmed the vital role of income on individual’s
happiness.
Before income increased to a certain level, income has a great impact on happiness.
Compared to western countries, Chinese residents' income is generally low, there is still
a big gap in material living conditions between China and developed countries.
Consequently, during a certain period, it is of great significance to raise residents‟
income. In fact, a good state of economy is very critical to both individuals and society.
It is quite essential to vigorously develop economy, in order to meet the increasing
material and culture needs of residents.
9.1.2 Regulate wealth gap between rich and poor
Previous studies have shown that income distribution is an extremely important factor
to affect overall level of happiness. Social Comparison Theory also argues that income
distribution is the core factor in determining happiness index. In addition, unfair
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distribution of income will lead to a lower level of happiness. We may take some
measures to regular income gap between individuals, control the excessive imbalance of
income distribution.
The expansion of wealth gap between rich and poor is an inevitable problem in the
process of economic development, which requires the regulation carried out by the
government. To this end, government can proceed from the following aspects: firstly,
improve tax and transfer payment system, so as to complete the redistribution of social
wealth. Second, speed up the process of social transformation in legal system,
accelerate the pace of marketization in monopoly industries, and create a just, fair and
open environment for income distribution. Finally, take more efforts to develop
backward areas, for instance, guide capital, technology and human resources to the less
developed areas, and ultimately improve the income level, narrow the wealth gap
between rich and poor.
9.1.3 Build a sound social security system, try to reduce unemployment
Currently it remains a primary priority on Chinese government's working agenda to

make Chinese residents live better lives and satisfy their needs for material and cultural
fulfillments. To improve the overall level of happiness, government should build a sound
social security system to protect the middle and lower income residents In addition,
some NGO in China argued that the unemployed have the lowest feeling of happiness in
society.
The unemployed are lack of income sources; particularly, their sense of self-realization is
seriously hampered. In order to reduce the unemployment rate and increase
unemployed people‟s happiness, on one hand, government has to adjust economic
structure, improve the demand and absorptive capacity for labor; on the other hand,
administrative unit need to spread unemployment insurance, which could improve the
basic living standard of unemployed or laid-off workers.
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CONCLUSION
9
10.1 Conclusion
In a nutshell, social well-being is an end state in which basic human needs are met and
china’s citizen are able to coexist peacefully in communities with opportunities for
advancement. Peace cannot be sustained over the long term without addressing the
social well-being of a population like in Xinjiang.
Without basic necessities, large-scale social instability will persist because people such
as ethnic group of Uighur’s in Xinjiang will be unable to resume the functions of normal
life - sustaining a livelihood, traveling safely, engaging in community activities, or
attending school. Without helping people return to their homes or new communities of
their choice or providing a means for peacefully resolving disputes, people may not
move beyond violent conflict or rebuild their lives.
Protecting the poor against such adversities requires strengthening social protection,
including medical assistance for the rural poor, a comprehensive rural medical
cooperative program, free basic education, and minimum income support in rural and
urban areas.
Although economic output has increased sharply over the past three decades, the
corresponding rise in the satisfaction level of the majority of the people has been low.
Instead, there has been substantial increase in depression and distrust.
Economic growth is important, but it alone cannot raise the level of people's happiness.
For that to happen, the benefits of economic development have to reach every person
in society or, in official terms, "the fruits of development (have to be) shared by all the
people".
The poor desperately need help. Whatever gains have been made against abject poverty
risk being undone by rising food prices. The government needs to implement a variety
of programs aimed at creating the conditions to improve the quality of life of all the
people, especially the poor, in the most equitable way.
The findings of this assignment suggest that citizens in the region, on average, believe
that government should actively promote social well-being.
88
LIST OF REFERENCES
10
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91

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• THE EFFECTS OF THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMICAL CONDITIONS OF A COUNTRY TOWARDS THE SOCIAL WELL BEING OF ITS PEOPLE

2.1 What is Social Indicators? 20

2.2 Subjective and Objective Social Indicators 21

2.3 Functions of Social Indicators 23

2.4 Framework of Social Indicators 23

2.5 What is Social Well-Being? 24

2.6 What is “Observable Indicators” Assess that Contribute to the

Well-Being of The People in China? 25

3.1 The Life Context in China 33

3.2 China Gross National Happiness Index (GNH) 51

4.1 The Marginalized Ethnic Groups in China 54

4.2 Comparing Ethnic Minority and Han Chinese in China 58

6.1 Do these Issues and Problems Stand Alone or Interrelated? 67

7.1 Does it Seem Possible for Uyghur Ethnic in Xinjiang to be Happy? 68

8.1 The Main Determinant of Stability for a Country to Ensure the

Well-Being of its Citizens 76

8.2 Pro-Poor Development and Building Capacity in China 77

8.3 Public Participation Among Ethnic Minorities in China 82

1.1 China Overview

Capital City Beijing

Area controlled by the People's Republic of People's Republic of China Flag

The People's Republic of China has administrative

1.1.2 History of China

a. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Fall of the Qing

b. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Foundation of the PRC

c. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – The Cultural Revolution

d. 20th Century Chinese History Landmarks – Reform and Opening

1.1.3 Location and Geography

A composite satellite image showing the Longsheng Rice Terrace in Guangxi

1.1.5 National Identity

Diversity of Ethnic Group in China

1.1.6 Ethnic Relation

1.1.7 Political Life

The President of China; Xi Jinping The Premier of China; Li Keqiang

b. Leadership and Political Officials

1.1.8 Basic Economy

faces problems collecting taxes in provinces that are becoming increasingly

Chinese Buddha Chinese Christian

Freedom of religion is guaranteed by China's constitution, although religious

Individuals who self-identify as Buddhists made up 11–16% of China's adult population,

A traditional Peking opera being performed Traditional Chinese food in Tianjin,

1.1.11 Social Stratification - Classes and Castes

a. Social Classes and castes

Farmers & Artisans

Merchants & Soldier

b. Symbols of Social Stratification

DETERMINE AND ASSESS THE “OBSERVABLE

2.1 What is Social Indicators?

Indicators may be material, such as numbers related to economic growth, and/or

2.1.1 What is an Indicator?

There is no single, universally accepted definition of the term ‘indicator’ (Scrivens,

The OECD defines an indicator as “a parameter, or a value derived from parameters,

Components of a Definition for Social Indicators

Table of Components of a Definition for Social Indicators

2.2 Subjective and Objective Social Indicators

2.2.1 Objective Social Indicators

Objective social indicators represent social facts independently of personal evaluations.

2.2.2 Subjective Social Indicators

2.3 Functions of Social Indicators

2.4 Framework of Social Indicators

Progress can be considered as a broad notion of a community‟s well-being that changes

Salvaris (2000) described a rapid growth in the development of community-based

a. The integration of the economic-social-environmental domains to respond to the