The United Nations Commission on Human Rights should be a forum of dialogue and cooperation for the promotion and protection of human rights instead of a battlefield of ideology, said Chinese Ambassador Qiao Zonghuai here Tuesday.

"We hope that this session of the commission will pursue the principle of dialogue and cooperation and conduct calm and in- depth discussion on human rights issues concerned by international community," Qiao told the 53-member commission at its 56th session in a written statement. "In the new century, the commission should take on a new face and discard all 'Cold War' practices." The Chinese ambassador also expressed hope that the current session would take concrete actions to redress the imbalance between the two categories of rights, adding that human rights are not the rights of a few countries nor the rights of the rich, but the rights of all people.

He said that the commission should take the suggestions by some regional groups and countries into account and adopt effective measures to improve efficiency of the commission. The suggestions include to reduce the session to four weeks by reclustering and biennializing of agenda items. The 56th session meets from March 20 to April 28.