China's efforts to "build people up" admirable, says parliamentarians from Pacific island countries

FUZHOU, China, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's ability to communicate with people and its efforts to "build the people up" are admirable, said a group of visiting parliamentarians from Pacific island countries.

China's whole-process people's democracy "is a unique mode of democracy of the people of China," and its commitment to putting people first is remarkable, Papali'i Li'o Taeu Masipa'u, speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Independent State of Samoa, told Xinhua here in a recent interview.

Papali'i said he was impressed by how China "looks after the most vulnerable people" and takes care of "the needs of the grassroots."

The legislative assembly speaker is one of the 21 parliamentarians from five Pacific island countries -- Samoa, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Niue, Tonga, and the Solomon Islands -- who participated in a seminar in Beijing last week that aimed to strengthen legislative exchanges between China and these countries.

They went on a six-day field trip afterward to villages, factories, parks, museums, and agriculture centers in Jiangxi and Fujian provinces to better perceive Chinese society. The series of events concluded Wednesday are organized by the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress.

Minister of Social Services of Niue, Sonya Talagi, said, "I admire the Chinese people for their vision and fortitude" and the "political will and commitment to bring everybody in the country up to the same level."

After observing how the municipal people's congress practices the whole-process people's democracy during the trip, Talagi spoke highly of the "scientific approach used in doing research, and of using fact and logical-based approaches in decision-making."

"There is no one-size-fits-all model of democracy, and it's important for the government to recognize the best solution that serves and protects its people," she noted.

"People tend to air their views in where they want to see the country go," and the Chinese government won't "turn blind eyes and deaf ears to the people ... that's how people will really take the ownership," said Joseph Yopyyopy, a national parliament member of PNG.

Practicing the whole-process people's democracy is the key factor in China's rapid economic development and long-term social stability, said Kapelieli Militoni Lanumata, a member of the parliament of Tonga.

Lanumata, an expert on agriculture, said that China's commitment to achieving "harmony between humanity and nature" is an important feature of modernization, and this is the value to be shared by all.

While visiting an electric car plant in Jiangxi province, Frederick Kologeto, Minister for Commerce Industry, Labour and Immigration of the Solomon Islands, said the rapid development of electric vehicles shows the modernization accomplishment of China, and the country's sustained efforts in addressing climate change, a huge concern for Pacific island countries.

Many parliamentarians expressed the hope that such exchanges could be held frequently in a bid to further promote mutual understanding.