Riots in China are threatening the Communist Party’s ability to rule, according to a policy document that seeks answers to the country’s social unrest.

It is the first time that a partywide paper has asked how best to deal with rising public discontent and underscores the seriousness of the problem.

Demonstrations have been on the rise for several years as those who have lost out because of market reforms have taken to the streets to voice their discontent. Last year official figures showed that the number of protests, or “mass incidents”, averaged one every six minutes. In 2004, officials reported 74,000 mass incidents in China, up from 10,000 in 1994, with the number of participants rising to 3.8 million from 730,000.

A decision by the party to find ways to actively prevent such mass incidents — made at its annual plenary session in October — marked the first time a document sent out to party members had referred to how to deal with the problem, the official Xinhua news agency said yesterday.

In a rare commentary on the sensitive topic, the state-run Xinhua news agency said: “The huge number and broad scope of mass incidents has become the most outstanding problem that seriously impacts social stability.”

While the Ministry of Public Security said last month that such incidents had fallen by 22.1 per cent in the first nine months of the year, to 17,900, the party document emphasised that this was no time for complacency.

Resentment over the loss of farmland, corruption, worsening pollution in the vast countryside, arbitrary evictions by property developers and lay-offs by state enterprises in cities have galvanised the Chinese to take sometimes drastic action.

The commentary noted that some economic disputes had been politicised, while some had become increasingly violent and confrontational. Even a small mishandling of a protest could lead to bloodshed.

A major reason for the unrest was the progress of reform that has created a widening wealth gap between better-educated, entrepreneurial and white-collar urban residents, and farmers, migrant workers and the elderly, who find it increasingly difficult to cope with a swiftly changing society.

In an unusually direct warning of the consequences of failing to tackle the grievances of China’s have-nots, the commentary said: “Whether we can actively prevent and properly deal with mass incidents is a significant test of the party’s ability to govern. The Communist Party — particularly local officials — must do its utmost to help laid-off workers, landless farmers, displaced migrants, peasant workers and the poverty-stricken populations of towns and villages.”

But there was a warning to the Chinese lawyers and human rights activists who have been harassed, beaten up or detained for representing those taking part in protests and riots. Xinhua said: “Hostile forces and elements inside and outside China have tried whatever they can to intervene in and take advantage of the mass incidents in an attempt to instigate and create turbulence.”

Li Baiguang, a lawyer who has taken up some cases of grievances, said that the situation for the party was critical. He told The Times: “These are people who have nothing . . . they will stop at nothing.”

He blamed local officials who implement policies aimed at boosting the local economy and improving their own image at the expense of the poor, because they knew that the system ensured they would move to a new job within three to five years: “They simply leave the mess for the next man to sort out.”

Xinhua also cautioned that local officials should exercise force and deploy the police with great prudence, saying that improper use of force could serve to intensify conflicts. The Government has admitted that three villagers died after police opened fire on demonstrators in Dongzhou, in the southern Guangdong province, last December during a violent stand-off over construction of a power station. A senior police official was dismissed.

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