How the 1% is made in China

Apr 27

Web Only

How the 1% is made in China

Scandal exposes political links to China's billionaire 'red aristocracy'.

China's former Chongqing Municipality Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai (R) and his son Bo Guagua stand in front of a picture of his father Bo Yibo, former vice-chairman of the Central Advisory Commission of the Communist Party of China, at a mourning hall in Beijing in this January 18, 2007 file photo.

The political scandal surrounding ousted Communist Party official Bo Xilai and his wife Gu Kailai has shined new light on the links between Chinese billionaires and Communist Party leadership.

For many, the fortunes of party-ruling families doesn't come as a surprise. China has become home to the world's richest lawmakers, and critics say there is no question the super-rich have been nurtured by corruption and politics.

The empire of the super-rich - built by the children and relatives of party members - is widely known as China's "red aristocracy", and the growth of that group has spurred backlash among netizens conscious of their country's widening wealth gap.

Last year, 115 mainland Chinese entrepreneurs made the Forbes Billionaires List, ranking China second behind the United States in having the most billionaires in the world. In 2012, China's billionaires dropped by 20 to 95 partially due to the government's curb on real estate prices and slowed economic growth.

View the story "How the 1% is made in China " on StorifyHow the 1% is made in China Scandal exposes political links to China's billionaire 'red aristocracy' Storified by The Stream · Thu, Apr 26 2012 17:56:24This infographic shows the distribution of the world's billionaires.World's billionaireAJstreamHowever, the true wealth of China's super-rich may be vastly underestimated as billionaires take great care in making their fortunes untraceable. The following graphic "China's hidden billionaires" was featured in a blog post by Mark Tanner.chinese-billionaires-graphAJstreamThe documentary "The KaChing! Dynasty" illustrates the lives of the super-rich class in China. 101 East - The KaChing! Dynastyaljazeeraenglish

Last year, the 70 richest delegates in the National People’s Congress reportedly had a combined net worth of 565.8 billion yuan ($89.8 billion), according to Hurun Report, a widely recognised authority in tracking the country’s wealthiest citizens. Compared to U.S. officials, that figure is more than 10 times the combined 7.5 billion held by 660 top officials in the U.S. Congress, the Supreme Court and the President in United States.

zs140538.xhsAJstreamBloomberg put together a graphic showing the links between Bo Xilai and high-ranking positions of the couple's extended family members. This includes Bo's first son, Li Wangzhi, a former Citigroup banker and a co-founder of Mauritius-registered company Lao Niu Investment, as well as two of his wife's sisters who had at least a combined $126 million in share holdings. Bo's family fortune currently is estimated at $136 million at least. boschina_single_go_03AJstreamBo's clan link convinced me in China, if ur a looser it doesn't mean you sucks but because others' relatives are "better" than yoursXiao_YBXL story turning out to be as much about the global network of the 1% as it is about ChinaRachel BeitarieThe most terrible thing is not the fortune empire, it is they steal every opportunity you diserve to win and leave you nothing but hopelessXiao_YKnown as "princelings", the offspring of Communist Party leadership have become a touchy issue. Many have criticised this class for dominating the country's high-level market networks with their privileged access.

Pictures of Bo Xilai's son, Bo Guagua, a Harvard University graduate student known for his lavish lifestyle, have been circulated across the internet. It is alleged that Guagua drove a red Ferrari to pick up the daughter of an American ambassador in Beijing for a date. In a recent statement published in The Harvard Crimson, Guagua defended himself against his "playboy" image. I have never driven a Ferrari. I have also not been to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing since 1998 (when I obtained a previous U.S. Visa), nor have I ever been to the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence in China. Photos of Bo Guagua via Beijing SHOTS:1180AJstreamThis video by Asia Analysis explains the power of China's princelings and "red nobility", which have been considered a major part of China's 1%. China 101 - Princelings: The Chinese EliteAsia Analysis@daxa says: The biggest resistance of China's reform doesn't come from the fact that Chinese are not ready for it; it comes from the party elite who leverage privileged access for private gain... 改革最大的阻力不在民间素质高低，而在于那些因特权获得巨大利益而给改革设置重重障碍的最高当权者，譬如落马的杀人凶犯家属和背后支持他的人。郭大虾@playboy2316: It is clear to the Chinese public that Bo Xilai is not the only princeling who has abused power . The story of how China's privileged elite and how its offspring shows off their fortune is almost everywhere. And the ousted officials are not those who have committed the most serious crimes; they are those who have the fewest allies and posed the greatest threat to the party's so-called solidarity. 中国公众心里很清楚，薄熙来并不是唯一一个滥用职权的太子党。中国充斥着特权阶层及其后代逍遥法外、炫耀日益增长的巨额财富的故事。被拉下马的党员可能并不是最严重的罪犯，而是盟友最少或最能威胁中共表面团结的人。樊The widening wealth gap in China has deepened public resentment toward the country's rich class. In April, two Chinese students in the United States were shot dead while sitting in a BMW near the University of Southern California. To the surprise of many, some in the Chinese online community were particularly drawn to the mention of a BMW. Using that reference, netizens jumped to the conclusion that the two were the children of the rich. Some even cheered over the deaths of the two students as a means of expressing their hatred towards the upper class. The following photo from Renren, Chinese Facebook-like website, shows a memorial held at USC campus for Ying Wu, one of the two victims. ;AJstreamDamoqingren123 says: They deserve to die. They are either the offspring of the officials or the rich. Otherwise, how could they drive a BMW? They use the people's tax money to live a lavish lifestyle. They deserve to die.1233AJstream@bsxxcu says: What we hate is not the wealth; but the heartlessness. What we are mad at are not the officials, but the corruption. What we feel unhappy about is not the poverty, but the unfairness. What we feel annoyed by is not the house, but the real estate profiteer. What we fear is not the police, but the abuse of power... 仇的不是富，是不仁；恨的不是官，是贪腐；愤的不是穷，是不公；怒的不是房，是奸商；怕的不是警，是枉法；愁的不是钱，是通涨。百姓反对的不是政府,而是政腐。反对的不是改革，而是反对那种顽固坚持特权制度的伪改革陆步平Many wealthy Chinese are anxious. A recent survey by the Bank of China and Hurun Report found that more than 60 per cent of Chinese millionaires have either emigrated or are considering about leaving the country. The new waves of immigration highlight worries among the country's 1% about the increasing income inequality, corruption and quality of life.
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