Democratic paths chosen by people deserve respect: Chinese envoy to Costa Rica

SAN JOSE, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- The democratic paths sovereignly chosen by the people deserve to be respected, Chinese Ambassador to Costa Rica Tang Heng said in an article published on Friday in local newspaper "Semanario Universidad."

Explaining the function and particularities of the political system and democracy in China in the article, Tang discussed how some rhetoric in the West describes China as a country without democracy or human rights.

In his opinion, it is better to have a patriotic, united front that promotes harmonious relations between different political parties, ethnic groups, religions, social classes, and between Chinese citizens inside and outside the country.

He said the deputies to people's congress in China are fully representative of the Chinese people, pointing to recent data that showed 2.62 million people were serving as deputies to people's congresses at all levels nationwide and among them, those at county and township levels accounted for 94.5 percent of the total.

Democratic politics in each country is the result of evolution and improvement based on the country's historical legacy, traditions and socio-economic development, Tang said, adding that China is ready to exchange with countries of the world on the issue of democracy with an open mind.