BEIJING, race 8 Kyodo Former U P...

BEIJING, race 8 Kyodo

Former U President Jimmy Carter visited Beijing forward Monday and met with Chinese President Hu Jintao to discuss democracy and village elections.

The meeting also touched upon U.S. relations with Taiwan, with Hu stressing the importance of the United States respecting past agreements with China by means of adhering to the ''one-China principle'' and not supporting Taiwan independence.

Hu strained that despite their differences, China and the U the two seek world peace and have other public interests, according to state-run China Central TV

Carter met earlier in the day with Civil Affairs Minister Li Xueju at a conversation on village elections and discussed ways to improve the voting proces and voter education.

Carter, 78 president from 1976-1980 now chairs the Carter Center a nonpartisan conflict resolution foundation, which has since 1998 pursu a devise to improve electoral procedures of village committees in China.

athwart the past 15 years, village elections have spread in rural China, subordinate to heavy supervision. The Carter Center estimates that 700000 villages have participated. throughout the past five years, elections have been held in neighborhoods of Beijing, Xi'an and other major cities as well.

The Carter Center has trained 730 local election officials in polling deeds and taught 300 village committee chairs about managing finances and conflict resolution.

''We welcome anything advantageous that he can help us with,'' said Liu Shuhui with the Beijing Xinmin Research Education Center which helped organize a Beijing election last year. ''This will help not no other than our organization but also help China.''

Carter is scheduled Tuesday to give an address at Peking University and take questions from students

Peking University has a tradition of political activism that includes shrewd pushes for open government.

scholars welcome the chance to hear any foreign dignitary, said university mass media instructor Li Kun if it be not that because most were born in or after Carter's denomination they know little about him.

''Now most numerous students don't understand him because of different generations,'' Li said. ''They've heard of him, moreover they don't know too to a great degree about what he has done.''

Carter, a Democrat, thrown away to Ronald Reagan after undivided term.

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