China on Wednesday called on the UN Human Rights Council on Wednesday to deal with human rights issues through dialogue and cooperation.

"We must learn to respect each other in order to seek common ground, engage in dialogue to enhance mutual understanding and seek cooperation to achieve our common objectives," said Li Baodong, Chinese ambassador to the UN Office in Geneva.

Addressing a regular session of the 47-state Council, Li said the body must avoid political confrontation to keep its credibility.

Political confrontation will only condemn the Council to reliving the fate of its defunct predecessor, the Human Rights Commission, he warned.

Li said the Council, which has successfully completed its institution-building work after nearly two years of existence, should also promote the spirit of harmony and accommodation.

"We are living in a world of great diversity, with differing national circumstances, varying levels of development, diverse religious and cultural traditions and uneven progress in the field of human rights," he said.

"We should adopt a more inclusive approach by acknowledging such differences and treating them with respect. We also need to strive for harmony as a means to secure development for all," he added.

Li also expressed hope that the Council, as the main organ of the United Nations in the field of human rights, would carry out its obligation to help solve the wide-spread problems the world is still facing.

"Poverty, hunger and diseases are threatening the most fundamental human rights of millions of people around the world ...The Middle East and other regions are still ravaged by wars and conflicts and the suffering of the Palestinian people continue unabated," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency March 6, 2008)