China’s economy is on the decline, with a surge in unemployment. Under the political pressure from authorities, indiscriminate attacks have been frequent in 2024. The official announcement recently about establishing a method to identify low-income populations has sparked speculation and mockery among Chinese netizens.
According to a report by Xinhua News Agency on December 31, the authorities will establish methods to identify low-income populations and verify the economic status of low-income families in 2025. They also mentioned policies will be put in place to develop social assistance services.
On social media platform Weibo, netizens expressed cynicism and mockery, saying, “First, solve the difficulty for 35-year-olds to find jobs.” “Prevent some people from gaining benefits through connections.” “First, assist the unemployed.” “The wealth gap is widening, hope for improvement instead of empty promises.”
Questions raised include concerns about corruption prevention during the identification process and suggestions for more reasonable regulations on higher education financial aid. There are also doubts about the transparency of the criteria for determining low-income status and potential misuse of assistance funds.
In recent years, China has seen a significant economic downturn, leading to a continuous rise in unemployment. The official figures regarding low-income populations in China remain unclear.
According to information released by the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs in October last year, the national dynamic monitoring platform for low-income populations has gathered basic information on over 66 million low-income individuals, accounting for approximately 4.7% of the total population. This group includes nearly 40 million recipients of minimum living allowances, over 4.6 million extremely poor individuals, and over 6 million from low-income families on the edge of poverty.
During the National People’s Congress press conference on May 28, 2020, Premier Li Keqiang stated that there are “600 million people in China with low and middle income, with an average monthly income of around 1,000 yuan,” and they may struggle to afford housing even in medium-sized cities. In early 2021, the Communist Party of China declared a “comprehensive victory in poverty alleviation.”
Professor Li Shi from Zhejiang University recently mentioned in an interview that around 65% of the total population in China falls below the standard of moderate income, equating to approximately 900 million low-income individuals.
Furthermore, a system for monitoring the low-income population nationwide was established by the Communist Party in 2021. There have been instances of fraud and corruption in the low-income assistance programs in recent years, with some beneficiaries turning out to be from affluent backgrounds.
In a report on May 5 this year, the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs issued a directive requiring enhanced identification and monitoring of low-income populations nationwide. The official document emphasized the goal of strengthening dynamic monitoring of low-income populations to mitigate risks.
On August 12, the Civil Affairs Department of Tianjin formulated the “Management Measures for Identifying Low-Income Populations.”
Economic analyst Li Hengqing commented, “The key issue is whether the money can directly reach the extremely poor.” Netizen Peter Pancoe believes that the purpose of these measures is not assistance but stability maintenance, aiming to influence the attitudes of the unemployed, disabled, and marginalized individuals towards the government and prevent potential uprisings due to poverty.
In 2024, China witnessed several major indiscriminate attack incidents, prompting Xi Jinping to instruct local regions and relevant departments to “strengthen the prevention and control of risk sources.” Nationwide initiatives have been launched to conduct comprehensive screenings of the so-called “eight unsuccessful individuals” and “three low and three scarce” groups.
The “eight unsuccessful individuals” refer to those who have encountered failures in investment, employment, life, emotions, relationships, mental well-being, mental health, and youth supervision. The “three low and three scarce” individuals indicate those with low economic income, social status, social reputation, limited social interactions, scarce opportunities for mobility, and insufficient guidance channels. These categories collectively target economically vulnerable groups.
Chinese issues expert Wang He previously stated to Dajiyuan that the Chinese authorities often resort to high-pressure control immediately after indiscriminate attack incidents, exacerbating the already tense social atmosphere.