Distinguished Director-General McKinley,

Distinguished Mayor Wang Yuefei,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

On the occasion of the opening of the Berne Initiative Regional Consultations for Asia in Guilin, a city with picturesque landscape and beautiful scenery, I would like to extend my warm congratulations on behalf of the Chinese Government.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Migration is a phenomenon familiar to all. In the context of global economic development and social advancement, migration and population flow are becoming more frequent. Some countries are traditionally formed with immigrants. The emergence and increase of migration reflect people's aspiration for better life, and conform to the necessity for optimization of talents and human resources.

Today, we live in the times of globalization which calls for countries to continuously open up instead of isolating oneself, and to learn from rather than repelling each other. In the developed countries, the social security system is comparatively more advanced while the birth rate is decreasing and aging has become increasingly serious. On the other hand, developing countries are relatively legged behind in terms of economic and technical development but their labor resources are abundant and people are honest and hardworking. If we can optimize labor resources and properly resolve migration problems, we will be able to achieve a win-win outcome. At present, there are 175 million people living or working outside of their home countries. We should vigorously encourage the contacts between countries, the exchanges among people and the integration of different civilizations. Only in this way can the world become the "global village" in its real sense.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

As the saying goes, a coin has two sides. Irregular migration such as people smuggling and human trafficking is also very rampant. It brings about negative impact on social-economic development and undermines social order and security. We believe that unfair international economic order, the irrational migration policy and the immoral human trafficking are among the root causes of illegal migration.

I would like to elaborate further on how to maintain regular migration while preventing and combating irregular migration as follows:

Firstly, widen the normal channels for regular migration and achieve common development. We should devote to the establishment of fair and just new international order so to narrow the gap between the rich and the poor and to eliminate the root causes of illegal migration.

Secondly, strengthen international cooperation and ensure shared responsibilities. The developed countries need to provide technical and financial support for the developing countries to enhance their capacity building on combating irregular migration.

Thirdly, respect national sovereignty and refrain from abuse of asylum policy. Political factors and the abuse of asylum policy severely hinder the international cooperation on combating irregular migration. Every country should give attention to this issue and take necessary measures to avoid it.

Fourthly, ensure the rights and interests of migrants and respect the basic human rights of illegal migrants. Based on the human-oriented principle, each country should guarantee the rights of regular migrants and provide the basic humanitarian treatment and necessary remedy for irregular migrants and victims of human trafficking.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The Asian countries attach great importance to migration issue, have actively carried out cooperation in this field and formulated some effective regional mechanisms. The intergovernmental Asia-Pacific Consultations on Refugees, Displaced Persons and Migrants (APC) and the Ministerial Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime of the Asia-Pacific Region (Bali Process) are two of which with the widest influence in the region. The convening of the Berne Initiative Regional Consultations for Asia will no doubt help promote the cooperation on migration issues among countries and regions in Asia.

The Chinese Government is always opposed to irregular migration, has fought against the transnational organized crimes such as people smuggling and human trafficking through legal and administrative measures, and have scored remarkable achievements. China has also actively participated in international and regional cooperation. China became an observer to IOM in June 2001, and has since then carried out effective cooperation with the organization. So far, China has developed fruitful bilateral cooperation with more than 40 countries by enhancing coordination and communication in counter-smuggling and concluding repatriation treaties. We are ready to continue to work with the international community to make our contributions on resolving illegal migration issues.

Last but not the least, I wish to express our sincere appreciation to the Swiss government and IOM for their efforts and contribution in making this consultation meeting possible. I also wish the Berne Initiative Regional Consultations for Asia every success, and all of you a pleasant stay in China.

Thank you all.