HIV cases said to be over-reported
2 November 2005
China is said to have fewer HIV infections than the 840,000 it claims, AFP reported, quoting sinologist Bates Gill of the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies. A Ministry of Health official in charge of monitoring HIV confirmed the figure was still 840,000, but added that a new figure would be released before December 1. A lower number had not been made public, said Bates, because its disclosure would undermine confidence in China's statistics.