China needs to do much more on human rights - Rudd

By Paul Majendie

BEIJING (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said on Friday China needed to do "much, much more" on human rights but acknowledged that Beijing had made major strides in the past 25 years.

In a 45-minute meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Rudd raised a whole range of human rights concerns from Tibet and Internet access to religious freedom.

Rudd, a fluent Mandarin speaker who previously served as a diplomat in China, felt that a "softly softly" approach was far more effective in pressuring for change in China, target of much Western criticism in the leadup to the Olympic Games.

The prime minister said there had been "a very large change" in terms of civil, political and economic freedoms in China compared to his days as a diplomat a quarter of a century ago.

"Has it resulted in a perfect set of civil liberties? Of course not ... Let's acknowledge where changes have occurred," he added.

Australia has been developing closer ties with China since Rudd became prime minister last year. China is Australia's biggest trade partner and is keen to maintain access to Australia's resources for its booming economy.

Rudd's language was more muted than the stance adopted by U.S. President George W. Bush, who flew into China straight after making some of his bluntest criticism on human rights.

Though Bush said he was coming for sport not politics, he gave a speech in Bangkok en route voicing "firm opposition" to China's detention of dissidents.