UN chief attacked over 'silence' on China dissidents

Ban Ki-moon (left) has defended his low-key style during the talks with President Hu Jintao in Beijing

 A human rights group has criticised UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon for failing to raise human rights issues at talks with China's President Hu Jintao.

The New-York based Human Rights Watch had urged Mr Ban to publicly express concern about the imprisonment of Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo.
It said Mr Ban's silence was shocking and sent a chilling message to Chinese activists rights activists.
Mr Ban's spokesman confirmed the matter was not discussed at Monday's talks.
The spokesman said the question of human rights did not come up even in a private meeting with President Hu, because, he said, there were many other issues to discuss.
He said Mr Ban had asked Beijing to play a greater role in solving African conflicts such as those in Somalia and Sudan.

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