Beijing slams US ‘woeful record of human rights’

The US turns a blind eye to human rights issues, seriously threatening the lives of its citizens, a Chinese report claims. The damning analysis of US human rights abuses is Beijing’s retaliation to a Washington report decrying the Chinese government.

The report’s release on Chinese state outlet Xinhua accused Washington of “double standards” and turning a “blind eye to its woeful record of human rights.”

The lengthy document rounds on the US government for its failure to protect its citizens and its disregard for their safety.

"The lives and personal security of the United States citizens, who were haunted by serious violent crimes, were not duly protected," the report said. It emphasized that women’s rights in particular were being degraded, citing rising levels of domestic violence reported in 2012.

"Religious discrimination is also rapidly on the rise, with an increase in insults and attacks against Muslims," it added.

In addition, gun crime was centered on in the report as one of the key failings of the Obama Administration who have still not introduced any concrete measures to mitigate violence after two high-profile attacks.

The report also contained an attack on the US political system, targeting the influence of political donations in shaping policies which it claimed amounted to a degradation of democracy.

“In the US, elections could not fully embody the real will of its citizens. Political contributions had, to a great extent, influenced the electoral procedures and policy direction. During the 2012 presidential election, the voter turnout was only 57.5 per cent.”

Those in glass houses…

Referencing US foreign policy, the report criticized Washington for styling itself as a “world judge” and encroaching of human rights abroad.

“The US seriously infringed upon human rights of other nations. In 2012, US military operations in Yemen, Afghanistan and Pakistan caused massive civilian casualties,” wrote the report. It cited reports of US soldiers burning copies of the Koran in Afghanistan last year which it condemned as “serious blasphemy.”

Guantanamo prison, “where the US has illegally imprisoned foreigners,” was targeted in the report as a gray area in the US’ attitude to human rights.

The report came in response Washington’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012, in which it denounced China for the repression and coercion of advocates of human rights. Beijing dismissed the report as flawed as it was based on unconfirmed media reports and speculation.
 
Beijing and Washington have consistently traded blows over the years over each other’s human rights records. The US put sanctions in place on China in 1989 following a deadly crackdown on demonstrators in Tiananmen Square. Washington’s human rights report is now in its 36th year and has repeatedly flagged China for its dubious rights record.