Mass incidents in China

Large-scale incidents of civil disobedience in the People's Republic of China are described by the Chinese government as "mass incidents" (Chinese: 群体性事件).^[1][2]

Mass incidents are defined broadly as "planned or impromptu gathering[s] that form because of internal contradictions", and may include public speeches or demonstrations, physical clashes, public airings of grievances, and other group behaviors that are seen as disrupting social stability.^[3] Through contemporary analysis of such events four key aspects of mass incidents have been identified "diversified participants, highly organized actions, easily escalated conflicts and thornier disputes to settle".^[4] Mass incidents have occurred in China because of the treatment of workers within state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and special economic zones (SEZs), the widening of income disparities, and issues associated with development projects, namely forced land acquisition and environmental degradation.

Within the past few decades, the number of mass incidents occurring in China has seen significant growth, indicated by The Annual Report of China's Rules (2009).^[5] In more recent times the numbers have continued to be high yet are less documented making reliable statistics rare, however it is definite that the frequency of mass incidents has increased, making these actions a vital threat to the stability of China.^[4]