The National Bureau
of Statistics published on Thursday a list of 30 government
organizations and state-owned and private enterprises that violated
the country's statistics law by refusing to provide data or by
giving false figures to local census takers.
At the top of the list is the Veteran Cadre Bureau of the State
Council's Commission for Supervision and Management of State-owned
Assets. The bureau repeatedly declined to cooperate with economic
census personnel even after it received negative publicity for its
actions on China Central Television.
The blacklist also includes private and state-owned enterprises,
a bank branch office, a government accounting office in Henan
Province and a township government statistics bureau.
"Preparations have entered the crucial stage for the nation's
first economic census, due to begin on December 31. We will
intensify the crackdown on violations of the law to ensure that the
census is a success," said Li Deshui, director of the National
Bureau of Statistics.
Local statistics bureaus began registering entities and
collecting preliminary data last summer, but there have been
widespread reports of noncooperation. In Beijing, for example, a
number of newer enterprises were not actually operating at their
registered addresses; and some census takers said they were abused
or even assaulted by business owners.
Additionally, in collating and verifying preliminary information
the local bureaus have noticed a number of substantial
discrepancies between data submitted for the census and that
contained in other records.
Li noted that some local governments have submitted phony
figures in the past, but the central government is determined to
get accurate, timely and complete data in the ongoing census.
He stated that the data gathered during the census would be kept
strictly secret and that no other government departments would be
allowed to use the data as evidence to punish any individual or
organization.
China's first nationwide economic census is designed to complete
a database covering all sectors so that the government can draft
plans for economic and social development. It will involve nearly
10 million statisticians and volunteers and could cost billions of
yuan.
(Xinhua News Agency, China.org.cn December 3, 2004)