The United Nations Commission on Human Rights should be a forum of dialogue and cooperation for the comprehensive realization of civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights and the right to development, a senior Chinese diplomat said in Geneva on Friday.

Ambassador Sha Zukang, head of the Chinese delegation, said at the ongoing 59th session of the Commission on Human Rights that by doing this, the commission can reestablish its credibility, especially among the developing countries.

The Chinese delegation holds that the promotion and protection of human rights is the common responsibility of the international community and all governments, he said.

Sha said that governments in the world, in the light of their own national conditions, have the obligation to choose the appropriate way to attain the goal of promoting and protecting human rights.

The Chinese ambassador urged the international community to help create favorable conditions and provide necessary assistance.

The Chinese delegation put forward its suggestions on the reform of the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Sha said the Chinese delegation supports the initiative of the high commissioner to restructure his office, hoping that after its restructuring, it would utilize more rationally its human and financial resources and improve its efficiency.

He urged the OHCHR to take into full account the principle of equitable geographical distribution in staff recruitment and increase the proportion of staff from developing countries.

(People's Daily March 22, 2003)