ABSTRACT
In China, the gap between the rural and urban income is larger than at any time since the 1949 revolution, and is among the highest in the world today. Chinese experts believe that some 10 million farm workers could be thrown out of work due to the effects of the World Trade Organization (WTO). If the
rural crisis were to result in widespread unrest, it would slow the full range of economic reforms underway …(Financial Times, 8 October 2001).
