China criticizes US human rights record

Beijing has censured the US for distorting China’s human rights situation, saying Washington is turning a blind eye to its own rights record and accusing other countries of rights abuses.

In a report released on Sunday, the information office of the State Council, or China’s Cabinet, stated that the US military has flagrantly violated international human rights in its operations across the globe, and political donations in the United States have frustrated attempts to foster democracy there.

The report, entitled “The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2012”, also pointed to gun violence in the US, and described it as another instance of human rights violation. It stated that gun violence remains a major threat to the lives and safety of ordinary Americans.

The document also cited the decreased turnout in the 2012 US presidential election and said the US government continues to constantly monitor the public, and political donations to election campaigns have excessive influence on US policies.

In its annual human rights report released on Friday, the US State Department accused countries such as Iran, Russia and Venezuela of clamping down on human rights activities.

It also criticized the governments of Egypt, Bangladesh and China for “heightened restrictions on organizations receiving funding from abroad” as well as the “killing, harassment and arrest of political, human rights and labor activists.”

Washington’s allegations came despite numerous UN Human Rights Council reports that have accused the United States of serious rights violations, including its assassination drone strikes in certain countries.

The international body has also slammed the US for rights violations in Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib prisons.