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BEIJING: China on Thursday accused the United States of human rights
hypocrisy, as it branded the US invasion of Iraq the “greatest
humanitarian disaster” of the modern world.
In an annual response to Washington’s
criticism of China’s human rights record, the Chinese government
labeled the United States arrogant, and highlighted what it said
were widespread US failures at home and abroad.
“[America’s] arrogant critique on the human
rights of other countries are always accompanied by a deliberate
ignoring of serious human rights problems on its own territory,”
said the report, released by the state Xinhua news agency.
“This was not only inconsistent with
universally recognized norms of international relations, but also
exposed the double standards and downright hypocrisy of the United
States on the human rights issue, and inevitably impaired its
international image.”
The US-led war in Iraq that began in 2003 was
one of the many issues of concern highlighted by China in the
report, entitled The Human Rights Record of the United States in
2007.
“The United States has a notorious record of
trampling on the sovereignty of and violating human rights in other
countries,” it said. “The invasion of Iraq by American troops
has produced the biggest human rights tragedy and the greatest
humanitarian disaster in the modern world.”
It also criticized civilian deaths in
Afghanistan, secret prisons and torture of detainees.
“‘Secret prison’ and ‘torturing
prisoners’ have become synonymous with America,” the report
said.
The report added that US citizens’ right to
join unions had been restricted, prisoners’ rights had been
violated, and authorities attempted to manipulate the media.
The report launched attacks on the United
States’ inability to tackle poverty, fight crime and even the
exorbitant cost of running for president.
-- AFP
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