China's leaders discuss reform

By Louisa Lim
BBC correspondent in Beijing

China's top leaders have begun a meeting in Beijing to discuss economic and political reform.

The meeting will be a test of Hu's standing

It is the first gathering of its kind since the new party leader, Hu Jintao, came to power in November last year.

The four-day long gathering will take place behind closed doors.

Leaders will be discussing how to narrow the gap between rich and poor regions and they are likely to focus on how to revive the fortunes of the former industrial heartland in the north-east.

This has been plagued by large-scale unemployment and was the sign of mass protests last year.

More controversial though will be moves towards amending the constitution to protect private property.

There has been opposition inside the Communist Party to the idea of elevating the status of private business.

Under discussion too will be moves to enshrine the theory of former President Jiang Zemin into the constitution.

And press reports have also suggested that Hu Jintao might use the occasion to push for more grassroots democracy and further accountability inside the party.

The results of these deliberations may not be clear for some time.

But they will be avidly watched for pointers about how much support within the party China's new leaders really enjoy.