But as in any reformation, the cake has not been equally shared. Then which social groups have benefited most?

A survey conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has tried to find some answers. A research group at the academy's Institute of Sociology surveyed more than 15,000 urban residents between the ages of 18 and 69 from across the nation.

The results are surprising to many. Almost 60 per cent of respondents hold that government officials are the biggest beneficiaries. A total of 55.4 per cent of those surveyed say private entrepreneurs as a group have gotten the most out of the reforms, even more than entertainers, State-owned enterprise managers, technicians and teachers.

Entrepreneurs, it seems, ought to easily top the list since the country's reform process was timed to coincide with the liberalization of China's markets and the improvement of its legal system, which has facilitated development of its private economy.

"Statistically, the survey is tenable," said Li Peilin, director of the institute.

According to Li, researchers generally survey 3,000 to 6,000 people in a study. This time, the fact that 15,000 people were questioned testifies to the thoroughness of the research.

"There have only been few surveys on such a scale," said Li.

The ages of people interviewed were made to correspond with that of local population so that the survey could be representative, while factors such as occupation, income levels and gender were also taken into consideration, according to Li.

"With such comprehensiveness , I think the results well represent people's opinions," Li said.

Highly representative as it is, the results may not be an absolute mirror image.

"The result does not necessarily reflect the reality because it is only a value judgement," said Xia Xueluan, a professor at Peking University's Department of Sociology.

As in other surveys, this one is not designed to search for the absolute truth of the facts, but rather the opinions held by those interviewed.

A noticeable fact is that the salary of government officials is not extravagant when compared with other social groups. A civil servant in the central government ministries earns around 2,000 yuan (US$240) per month on average. Local civil servants earn still less. The income level is higher than that of ordinary workers, but lower than many white collar professionals - let alone private business owners.

It is possible that survey respondents may have taken into account civil servants' free or low-priced housing, medical care and other benefits, as well as respectable social status. But even before China adopted its reforms and opening-up policies, such officials had enjoyed those types of privileges.

"Government officials had been among the highest-income groups in the Mao Zedong era. Their social status now is not more prominent," said Kang Xiaoguang, a researcher with the Centre of China Study under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

In other words, their low income and unimproved social status should not have made people think they are the group benefiting most from the country's reforms.

"I think by choosing them as the greatest beneficiaries, the people surveyed indirectly are pointing to perceived corruption," said Kang.

Although the central government has made unremitting efforts to root out corrupt officials - who account for a small part of civil servants - the spread of corruption stories has sowed seeds of discontent.

This year, 13 officials at provincial- and ministerial-level were dealt with for corruption. And China has meted out death penalties to three provincial- and ministerial-level officials since the late 1970s, with the latest, Wang Huaizhong, former vice-governor of Central China's Anhui Province, sentenced to death on Monday.

The media have covered those corruption cases in detail in recent years while, in the past, not many cases were reported so vehemently due to the underdeveloped press.

"Increased media coverage gives an impression that there are more and more officials that take bribes and trade power for money, although in fact it is not the case," said Xia.

He said people thus may think few officials aren't corrupt. "This is kind of an 'empathy'."

To win the hearts of the people, a tougher hand on corruption is certainly necessary. But systematic improvement is more important.

At its root, government should make itself more accountable to the people and encourage social supervision of those doing the governing.

Meanwhile, it must change its mode of economic regulation. Administrative power should gradually retreat from economic fields to lessen chances of rent-seeking.

"China is a society that is on the whole still under a centralized management. The administrators have ease access to resources; that's why they could benefit from the reform," said Li Qiang, head of Tsinghua University's School of Humanity and Social Sciences.

That is one of the dearest lessons we have learned from past reform efforts.

What is encouraging is that the central and local governments have been prompt in improving economic regulation.

The central government has relinquished more than 1,300 administrative approval items, for example, to give the market more say in deciding economic matters.

That would not only help fulfil China's World Trade Organization commitments, but help stem corruption.

(China Daily)