It would be in the best interest of Anna Mae He, the Chinese girl at the center of a lawsuit between her Chinese parents and an American couple she has lived with, if she lives with and is raised by her natural parents, a Chinese diplomat has said.

The Chinese Embassy has been following very closely and paying great attention to the case, and has been repeatedly urging the relevant court to handle the case in a fair and just manner in accordance with the law, said Wang Chang, an attache at the embassy.

Wang went to Nashville, Tennessee, last Wednesday to attend a hearing at the state Supreme Court on an appeal on the case, brought by Anna Mae's parents, Shaoqiang He and Qin Luo.

Qiu Xuejun, a counselor and consul general at the Chinese Embassy, has written on several occasions to the state Supreme Court after the appeal was filed, to express the embassy's concern, and urge the court to handle the case in a fair and just manner in accordance with the law and to maintain the legitimate rights of the Chinese couple, Wang said after the hearing.

Parental rights are one of the basic human rights, Wang said. For Anna Mae, to live with and be raised by her natural parents is in her best interest, and should be protected by law and get moral support, he said.

The Chinese Embassy would continue to follow the case closely and provide necessary consulate assistance to the He family, Wang said.

The case involving Anna Mae's custody started in February 1999, when the He couple put their three-week-old daughter in private foster care with a Memphis couple, Jerry and Louise Baker.

When the Hes tried to regain custody of their daughter in 2000, the Bakers refused, thus starting the six-year-long legal battle.

A Memphis judge ruled in May 2004 to terminate the Hes' parental rights to Anna Mae on the grounds of abandonment, and the decision was upheld by the Tennessee Court of Appeals in November 2005. The He couple then appealed the appellate court's ruling with the state Supreme Court.

Source: Xinhua