Nation's rich have poor reputation

Wealthy Chinese do not have a good reputation, a survey by China Youth Daily and Sina.com has found.

Wealthy Chinese do not have a good reputation, a survey by China Youth Daily and Sina.com has found.

The poll, conducted last week, showed about 70 percent of 3,990 interviewees believe the well-off are immoral and not worthy of respect. Only 4 percent thought rich people are good, the survey said.

For the rich to become popular they need to do three things, the survey suggested.

First, they need to have a sense of social responsibility. Second, they need to be self disciplined, and third, they need to have a caring heart.

The number of people who make at least $50,000 a year increases by 15 percent a year and, according to the China Economic Times, the country now has 1.5 million rich people.

The China Youth Daily and Sina.com survey found interviewees questioned how the rich became rich in the first place.

"Some rich people are thought to have accumulated their wealth through illegal means, such as bribery," said a post-graduate student at the Communication University of China.

Even so, the survey found wealthy people who abide by the law, have a sense of social responsibility and a caring heart, are respected.

The poll showed about 60 percent thought these kinds of wealthy people were worthy of respect.

The survey suggested many voters were much better disposed toward rich people from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and Western economies - rather than the mainland.

Hong Kong property tycoon Li Ka-shing was most highly regarded, followed by Bill Gates, mainland property tycoon Wang Shi and basketball player Yao Ming.

"Rich people on the mainland invest too little in charity and gain too much," a student from Beijing Sports University said.

Yu Guoming, a professor at Renmin University of China, called on the heads of Chinese companies to think and invest in a long-term way. "Corporate social responsibility is not only about charity, it also connects the company with the government and the public."

中國的富人們缺了些什么？

(China Daily) 中國青年報和新浪網聯合開展的一項調查發現，中國富人的社會形象較差。

該項于上周開展的民意調查顯示，在3990名受訪者中，有70%的人認為富人道德低下，不值得尊重。僅有4%的人對富人持正面印象。

調查表明，中國富人身上最缺乏的三大品質是社會責任感、自律精神和愛心。

據《中國經濟時報》統計數據，我國年收入至少5萬美元的富裕人口數量以每年15%的速度增長，目前已達150萬人。

該調查發現，受訪者對富人的發家方式最為質疑。

中國傳媒大學的一名研究生說：“有些富人是通過受賄等不法手段來積聚財富的。”