'Social conflicts' being solved, says official

BEIJING - The Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese government can and will deal with "social conflicts" that have arisen during the nation's fast social and economic development, said Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which is China's top political advisory body.

Zhao gave the assurance on Wednesday to journalists after they asked him about the issue of social conflicts ahead of the opening of China's "two sessions". The meetings in Beijing next month will involve thousands of legislators and political advisers from both the National People's Congress (NPC) and the CPPCC National Committee.

Zhao admitted that a series of problems have come to the fore in recent years during China's fast economic development. The problems include an imbalance in development from one region to another, an unfair distribution of wealth across various groups and a wide gap between the rich and the poor.