SCIO briefing on the CPC's philosophy and practice of respecting and safeguarding human rights
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E-mail China.org.cn, June 30, 2021
Phoenix TV:
Some Western countries have been making a lot of fuss about China's human rights issues for years, especially smearing China on issues related to Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Tibet. As the ruling party, how does the CPC view this issue? Thank you.
Lu Guangjin:
Indeed, China is a socialist country under the leadership of the CPC where people became masters of the country. As China is different from Western countries in the value orientation of human rights, Western countries believe that human rights in China are not up to their standards. So, any progress of China's human rights may not draw their attention. Regarding this issue, spokespersons of the Foreign Ministry have made several systematic, comprehensive and clear statements, so I will not elaborate on some specific issues. Here I would like to stress the following points:
First, in my opinion, Western countries are not really concerned about China's human rights, they just use it to interfere in China's internal affairs. If they are really concerned about China's human rights, especially human rights in Xinjiang, I am wondering why they did not speak up and condemn the activities of extremists when Xinjiang suffered terrorism and extremism. They did not condemn the acts of mutilation of human beings. In contrast, as we know, some violent terrorist organizations in Xinjiang were supported and sheltered by some Western forces. We believe that this is entirely the result of double standards on human rights. If they really care for human rights in China, why didn't they recognize China's progress and development of human rights, especially the great achievements in reducing poverty, which lifted more than 800 million people out of poverty? They become better off and are now heading towards a higher level of prosperity, which gave a great boost to people's rights to subsistence and development. We have also noticed that they never focused on these progress in their news reports. I am afraid that there is some prejudice and misunderstanding. More importantly, there are political purposes. Some Western countries, in particular, used the so-called double standards on human rights to smear China's human rights situation to defame China, tarnish its image in the world, achieve their political purposes, and contain China's rise and development.
Second, if some Western countries really care about human rights, they should not only look at China, but instead examine themselves. Just as our Foreign Ministry spokesperson put it, we urge these countries to take a look at themselves in the mirror and see what human rights are like in their own countries. In the face of their own increasingly prominent human rights problems, it is time for them to reflect, face up to their own issues and find solutions to address their problems. In the long run, these problems are detrimental to the improvement of human rights in these countries. Recently, I have been reading a book that some of you may be reading, too. It is a book written by an influential black American journalist with the New York Times. It is called "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents." If you are interested in it, you are recommended to buy it to read. The author made a thorough analysis of the serious racial problems in the U.S. I have read some books of this kind, but I don't think there have been any with a more thorough analysis than in this book. Why? The author believes that the racial problems in the U.S. relate to neither racialism, racial discrimination nor racist policies. What's the problem? It's all about the caste system according to the author. We know what the caste system is. It is obviously a racial problem far more serious than racialism and racist policies. In reading this book, I realized that its analysis of the most pressing human rights problems in the U.S. today enables us to view from a more profound perspective the origins, complexity, long-term existence and dangers of these problems, to which we should pay attention with an alert mind. We should not simply listen to what they say, but pay attention to their actions. Thank you.
