China's rulers to aid farmers

Many farmers struggle with primitive tools and harsh conditions
China's top governing bodies have set out new policies to close the wealth gap between farmers and city dwellers, the official news service has said.

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Farmers' protests against unfair, unaffordable and arbitrary taxes imposed by local officials are commonplace in China.

No word on how the government is going to keep local officials in line. It's hard enough keeping informed about what's going on at the local level: Rosy Reports From Underlings Leave Chinese Leaders in the Dark: Workers are conditioned to give bosses only good news By Mark Magnier:

Leaders in every nation face problems marshaling information to make good policy. But China's systemic limits on telling the truth arguably result in a less solid foundation for making decisions and a longer lead time before the "Houston, we have a problem" message hits their desks.

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Although reforms are underway across Chinese society and the new leadership appears to be more open, there are clear limits. Newspapers still downplay or ignore sensitive topics in favor of positive news. Civic groups are in their infancy and are closely watched. There is no political opposition. The Internet is restricted. And the glass is mostly half full when it comes to official Communist Party and government reports.

"Traditionally, our way of handling bad information has been to keep it secret," said Ma Ling, a biographer of President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. "With SARS, they realized they were getting information late. It was a real turning point in Chinese politics."

Although the severe acute respiratory syndrome fallout made pointedly clear the cost of traditional Chinese information policies and the benefits of more accurate reporting, analysts say old habits die hard in a system that has long relied on party reports, news organizations and personal emissaries to inform decision makers. Nor is it clear whether these lessons will stick without pressure from the top.

Government and party reports are among the most formal information sources for China's decision makers. But their authors remain under some pressure to support the leaders' current campaign — or say what they think leaders want to hear, analysts say.

"Generally there's a 90% gap between what's in the reports and reality," one party member said. "I know. I worked as a party secretary and had to draft many of those reports."

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Many information channels, historians say, echo those used by Chinese emperors hundreds of years ago.

"Hu and Wen sending private emissaries to get information in secret, for example, is exactly like the Song Dynasty," which lasted from 960 to 1279, said Deng Xiaonan, a Beijing University history professor.