China and the European Union agreed yesterday to co-operate more in their efforts to stamp out the people-smuggling trade.
The agreement came during an EU-China summit meeting in Beijing. A second meeting of experts is now scheduled to be held before the end of the year. A group of Chinese migration experts visited Brussels for a day of meetings on October 13.
'It would be useful at least to be able to exchange information,' EU President Romano Prodi said. 'We have to do something; think of the size of China's population.'
French President Jacques Chirac said events like the deaths of Chinese illegal migrants in a container at Dover, England, earlier this year were unacceptable.
Both sides have now agreed to co-operate in detecting and dismantling criminal networks involved in trafficking and in organising information campaigns aimed at potential victims.
During talks on human rights, Mr Chirac read out a list of political prisoners and said he raised the question of China's treatment of Catholics, Falun Gong followers and the issue of Tibet.
Mr Prodi said he asked China to ratify key UN covenants on human rights. Xinhua said the International Convention of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was 'up for deliberation and ratification' during an October 23 to October 31 session of the National People's Congress.