The scholars were attending the International Symposium on Oriental Culture and Human Rights Development, which opened in Beijing on Tuesday.

The need for human rights was common to the whole world, though different countries had different views or practices which could cause misunderstanding or inevitable conflicts, said Zhu Muzhi, honorary president of the Human Rights Society of China, at the opening ceremony. The correct solution was to strengthen communication to promote mutual understanding, he said.

Yang Zhengquan, vice president of the Human Rights Society of China, quoted some basic theories of Confucianism including "harmony is all important" and "man in harmony with nature", when explaining the relationship of cultural and human rights diversity.

Though the 2000-year-old philosophy did not directly use the term "human rights", the idea of human rights shone through its numerous maxims, Yang said.

Judi Moylan, member of the Federal Council of Australia, said occidental culture did not stress a citizen's responsibility towards his country, but in oriental culture the individual's ultimate goal was to serve society, and an outstanding individual could influence other people and promote social stability.

Dr. Grigory Lukiyantsev, a Russian expert on human rights, said it was vital to maintain the dialogue mechanism to carry on sincere dialogues based on equality and mutual respect when dealing with human rights issues.

Jointly held by the Human Rights Society of China and the China Foundation for Human Rights Development, the three-day symposium has attracted over 70 scholars, experts and officials from 26 countries and regions including China, the United States, Australia and Russia.

(Xinhua News Agency October 29, 2002)