Disputes over wages and working conditions in the factories of China's east coast have grabbed most of the headlines in recent years. But there are long-simmering problems as well.

How to crack down on corrupt officials? What to do for farmers unhappy about the compensation they receive - or not - for land taken for development? All of these disputes underline a widening gap between China's rich and poor.

In hhis programme Michael Robinson examines China's leaders attempts to manage these growing conflicts and calls for political change - not for multi-party democracy, as some in the West advocate, but for a shift from a system of absolute Communist Party rule to one where individual rights are protected under law. Show less