ANALYSIS: Beijing Conducts Training for Village Officials Nationwide as Rural Conflicts Intensify

Expert says conflicts between communist cadres and the masses are concentrated in the countryside

Residents stand next to smashed and overturned cars after civil unrest in the village of Shangpu in China's southern Guangdong Province on March 2, 2013. Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images

China’s ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) recently conducted a rare training session for village officials nationwide. Experts have suggested the move would be part of the CCP’s attempts to address its power crisis resulting from intensified conflicts in rural areas.

The large-scale simultaneous training courses, jointly organized by the Central Committee and the Party School, lasted from April 24 to 28, according to a May 16 report by state-run media Xinhua.