During the ongoing 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council, UN officials expressed their appreciation for the progress of human rights in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Xi Jia has more.

Different countries may have different definitions for what make up HUMAN RIGHTS. They include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, the right to work and education, and many more. It is held that everyone is entitled to these rights, without discrimination.

NIKITA ZHUKOV DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF RUSSIA TO THE UN OFFICE "A person in poverty cannot enjoy human rights because the main conditions for his existence have not been fulfilled."

China lifted more than 13 million people in rural areas out of poverty in 2018. Figures show that China's poverty relief achievements have contributed more than 70 percent to global poverty alleviation work in the past 40 years.

NIKITA ZHUKOV DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF RUSSIA TO THE UN OFFICE "I think that China's approach to human rights in the past 40 years is something that a lot of countries could study, very much that could be learned from the Chinese experience."

Areas like Xinjiang and Tibet in China are often the focus when discussing human rights as they are geographically remote, with less access to modern services. Disposable income in Xinjiang for both urban residents and farmers is 80 times what it was 40 years ago. Human rights in these areas are supported by the government in terms of medical treatment, environment protection, traditional cultural protection, and education.

PEDRO LUIS PEDROSO CUESTA PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF CUBA TO THE UNOG "Cuba is 11 million people, how many million people is there in Xinjiang? And Xinjiang is a remote city, so imagine a remote area of hundreds of millions of people have such development, not only economic which is quite important but also social development, a sustainable development. It goes very much in UN agenda."

XI JIA GENEVA "Protecting human rights means protecting people's rights of living better lives. When politics comes into play, relations between countries become frayed. And just like any conflict between nations, the best path forward involves increased dialogue and understanding. Xi Jia, CGTN, Geneva."