China's UN envoy: Dialogue and cooperation, not confrontation, the path forward

The United States and some Western allies are "provoking confrontation, pointing fingers at other developing countries' human rights situation, and brazenly launching smear campaigns," China's envoy to the United Nations charged Thursday at the UN General Assembly's Third Committee debate.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the United Nations called out the US and its Western allies for their "totally unfounded "accusations, saying that "instead of caring about human rights in China, their real intention is to sabotage China's stability and development."

In total disregard of the facts, the US and a few other countries are fabricating lies, making groundless accusations against China, and using human rights to interfere in China's internal affairs, Zhang said. These moves are adamantly opposed and resolutely rejected by the Chinese government and people, he said.

"To the US and a few other countries, let me say this: It's time to wake up, and face global challenges. Dialogue and cooperation are the right way forward," he added.

China and the Chinese people have made steady progress in human rights, bringing about a "historic resolution" to poverty a decade ahead of the UN's 2030 agenda for poverty reduction and sustainable development, and have realized national independence and prosperity, Zhang said.

"The Chinese people have become the real master of the country. And ideals of democracy, human rights, freedom, and equality have been translated into reality. China has achieved constant progress in human rights and made prominent contribution to the global human rights cause," he said.

The promotion and protection of human rights is "a dynamic process in history," and the international community must "steer the right course forward," the envoy said.

Imposing a single model of human rights development and governance, especially from the outside, is neither feasible nor democratic, rather, "a diversity of paths" should be respected, Zhang said.

The ambassador noted that some countries, while espousing a return to multilateralism, are actually "forming exclusive cliques."

They talk about upholding international order, while "imposing unilateral sanctions and coercive measures," he said, "and infringe upon the rights and interests of people of other countries."

Zhang reiterated: "We must uphold dialogue and cooperation, instead of creating confrontation."

"The world is progressing. Gone are the days when developing countries were trampled upon. Human rights are not some privilege of the West. People of every nation have the right to live a happy life," he said.

Equality and human rights are not only the shared aspiration of all humanity, but also a goal that the Chinese people constantly pursue, the ambassador said. China's path toward this goal is in accordance with its national conditions and will brook no external interference, he added.

"It is the people's support that gives us the greatest strength in advancing our human rights path with distinctive Chinese features. The best testament is the happy life and smiling faces of the Chinese people," Zhang said.

"Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, we have found a developmental path suited to our national conditions, "Zhang said. China's "greatest human rights achievement is to bring prosperity and happiness to the people," he added.

China has also made "strategic progress" in containing the pandemic at home, as well as provided more than 100 countries and international organizations with over 1.2 billion doses of vaccines, more than any other nation in the world, Zhang said.

China's progress is a result of the hard work of the Chinese people. China never sees it as a gift from other countries and will never allow any external force to deprive the Chinese people of their rights, or interfere in China's progress, the envoy said.

"Our resolve to follow our own developmental path remains unshakable; our resolve to defend China's fundamental interests remains unshakable; and our resolve to safeguard the common interests and dignity of the wider developing world remains unshakable," he said.

On Thursday, Egypt, Algeria, Chad, Turkmenistan, Belarus, Venezuela, and other countries "actively supported and echoed China's position' for all countries to have the right to independently choose their path to human rights based on their national conditions, and to resolutely oppose the politicization of human rights issues, and external interference in the internal affairs of another country," according to a statement from China's permanent mission to the UN.