Weaponizing human rights debate decried

Experts laud China's role in alleviating poverty, call for respecting differences

Neil Davidson, a Labour Party member of the House of Lords of the United Kingdom since 2006, criticized countries for weaponizing human rights debates at a time of tension in international relations.

He said the purpose of a discussion on human rights should be to learn from each other and to understand each other, not to promote divisions among people.

"There is no benefit from confrontation … Mutual learning enables societies to develop and flourish," he told the 2023 China-Europe Seminar on Human Rights held on Wednesday in Rome and participated by over 140 scholars, experts and officials from 15 countries.