Western views of human rights don't represent int'l community: Chinese FM

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday that the views of human rights held by some Western countries don't represent those of the international community.

He made these remarks in a meeting with his counterpart of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

The visiting Chinese foreign minister said that the situation of a country's human rights shall be judged by its people, rather than other countries' opinions.

"The world should listen to and absorb the views of developing countries so that the definition of human rights will be more comprehensive, diverse and balanced," Wang said.

He stressed that the rights to live and develop are as important as the political and social rights, and fairness and justice should be respected the same as democracy and freedom.

"It's normal that different civilizations and traditions in different development phases lead to different understandings and emphases. This is why we advocate communicating equally and learning from each other on the human rights issue," Wang said.

He reiterated that China opposes any form of interference in other countries' domestic affairs under the pretext of protecting human rights, and objects to slandering other countries by using human rights as a political tool.

"No country is superior to another in this world, and the standard of a single country should not be regarded as the international standard," Wang said, noting it would be the utmost injustice in human history if some Western countries keep using human rights as an excuse to suppress and contain developing countries and to deprive non-Western countries of the rights to develop.

China is keen to hold dialogue with the UAE over the human rights issue and jointly seek progress in protecting human rights in both countries and the world as well, Wang added.

For his part, Sheikh Abdullah said that the level of well-being and happiness of the citizens should be the criteria to judge the human rights situation in a country.

Forcing others to accept one's own values is hegemony, and many developing countries have suffered such kind of unfair treatment over the human rights issue, he noted.

The UAE is willing to enhance communication and cooperation with China on promoting and protecting human rights, he added.