A Chinese delegation led by Sha Zukang, top Chinese diplomat to
the UN office in Geneva, will attend the first meeting of the UN
Human Rights Council to be held in Geneva from June 19 to 30, and
Vice Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi will address the meeting, the
Foreign Ministry said yesterday.
China considers the meeting to be extremely important and will
put forward its views on the future development of the newly
established council and participate in discussions in a positive
and constructive manner, the ministry's newly appointed spokeswoman
Jiang Yu told a regular news briefing.
"We are ready to make joint efforts with all parties to make the
meeting a success and a good starting point for the council," she
added.
The UN General Assembly established the Human Rights Council in
May to replace the much criticized and now defunct Human Rights
Commission. Forty-seven members, including China, were elected;
China received 146 votes.
This first meeting will outline the councils' rules of
operation, and include a discussion of problems in relation to
international human rights issues, Jiang said.
She urged all parties concerned to further the cause of the
council to actively improve and protect human rights, and to avoid
the previous practice of political confrontation and double
standards.
US resolution on China's religious affairs
Referring to US lawmakers' latest criticisms of China "allegedly
stepping up religious persecution," Jiang said "it was a groundless
accusation that interfered in China's internal affairs."
The US House of Representatives on Monday approved a resolution
condemning China for "rising persecution" of religious
believers.
The resolution "constitutes a gross interference in China's
internal affairs," Jiang said. "We express strong dissatisfaction
and firm opposition."
"We advise US lawmakers to care more about their own issues and
do more to address the human rights violations in their own
country," she said. "They should stop interfering in other
countries' internal affairs under the pretext of religious affairs
and human rights."
Iran nuclear standoff
Jiang urged all the key players to be patient and restrained as
Iran's leaders analyze an international proposal aimed at solving
the Iranian nuclear standoff.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana went to Tehran last
Tuesday to present a package of incentives in exchange for Iran's
suspension of uranium enrichment. The incentives were developed by
the five UN Security Council permanent members -- Britain, China,
France, Russia, the US -- and Germany.
"Now, there's a new opportunity for a peaceful solution to the
Iranian nuclear issue through diplomacy and negotiation," Jiang
said.
"China appreciates Iran's offer to seriously study the proposal,
and hopes Tehran will respond actively to create favorable
conditions for the resumption of talks," she said.
The proposal includes both incentives aimed at persuading Iran
to suspend uranium enrichment and possible sanctions if it decides
not to comply.
Iran has reiterated that it is ready for unconditional talks,
but insists that it will not negotiate on its right to the peaceful
use of nuclear technology.
China will continue to play a "constructive role" in the debate,
and work with other parties to help solve the standoff, Jiang
said.
Military exports
Jiang also rejected London-based human rights group Amnesty
International's report accusing China of selling arms to an array
of alleged human rights abusers.
"China takes a responsible attitude toward military exports,"
she said.
In a report released on Sunday, Amnesty claimed that China was
selling arms to countries such as Sudan and Myanmar, in a bid to
extend its trade and diplomatic reach.
"These accusations are groundless and do not square with the
facts," Jiang said.
She said China takes a cautious and responsible attitude to
military exports and adheres to the three principles in arms
trade.
According to the three principles, military exports "should help
enhance the self-defense capability of importing countries, should
not impair regional and global peace, security and stability, and
should not be used to interfere with other countries' internal
affairs."
Statistics from the Stockholm International Peace Research
Institute show that between 2000 and 2004, the US exported US$25.9
billion worth of weaponry, or 48 percent of the world's total arms
trade volume. Weaponry exported by China in the same period was
valued at only US$1.4 billion, a mere 5 percent of US exports.
(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency June 14, 2006)
