From the Chinese Law and Politics blog:
It’s not clear. Chinese authorities noted in 2005 that “mass incidents” (including riots, protests, demonstrations, and mass petitions) in China had surged to 74,000 in 2004, up from 10,000 in 1994. Since then, different Chinese officials have reported broad declines in mass incidents. But these reports have been vague, inhibiting the ability to make comparisons with prior statistics. Officials have released detailed information for other categories of incidents, such as “public order disturbances.” But the difference in categorization between these and “mass incidents” also inhibit meaningful comparisons. [Full text]
