Perhaps Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper did not expect First Nations people to seek help from China to press him on Canada's human rights. The minister is now on his second China visit seeking to strengthen economic ties with his country's second-largest trading partner.

According to the Canadian Press, the Yinka Dene Alliance, a group of five First Nations that represents several thousand people from British Columbia, have asked China to quiz Harper on Canada's human rights record during his visit through a public letter.

The letter has gone viral on Weibo. It reads that previously Prime Minister Harper always challenged China's human rights record, and now the Yinka Dene Alliance are hoping China could raise their human rights concerns with Harper.

It may have been the intent of the First Nations to draw a comparison between themselves and allegations of the situation in Tibet. This irony is not being lost on a China used to facing such remarks.

However, it is ironic that China is appealed to with this purpose. After many years of being the target of Western attacks, it is now hoped to be a defender of human rights. Value diplomacy, including human rights, is increasingly adopted by Western countries in engaging with emerging ones. It has become clearer that value diplomacy, in many cases, is a tool for securing broader interests.

Now it seems that the concept is haunting the West. Under the era of globalization, value diplomacy cannot replace normal diplomatic, political and economic relations between countries. In front of economic interests, it appears particularly weak.  

When Harper came to power in 2006, he showed a tough stance toward China by criticizing China's human rights record and meeting with the Dalai Lama. But now, Harper's China policy has become more practical. It is the economic relationship that requires attention at the highest political level.

Every country has its own human rights concerns. The letter to China by Canadian First Nation groups details a long list of human rights abuses. While it is fair to say Western human rights standards have helped China to raise the bar, let us not forget every country has its own dark corner concerning human rights.

Value diplomacy is not a mighty card in international politics. Western countries should pay more attention on reflecting on their problems rather than reproaching those of others. Nowadays, a moral crisis is happening in many Western countries, such as the riots in London last summer, Occupy movements and other anti-government campaigns.

Improving human rights and ensuring individual rights are challenges for all governments. It is not a tool in international diplomacy.