Politics
2020.03.13 16:13 GMT+8

China reveals human rights violations in U.S. in seven aspects

Updated 2020.03.13 21:29 GMT+8
CGTN

China on Friday issued a report on human rights violations in the United States, revealing how "the human rights situation in the United States has been poor and deteriorating" in seven aspects.

The report, titled "The Record of Human Rights Violations in the United States in 2019," was released by the State Council Information Office and is based on research, published data and media reports about the human rights record in the United States.

It began by citing a quote from U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a speech on April 15, 2019: "We lied, we cheated, we stole ... It reminds you of the glory of the American experiment." 

"The remarks of U.S. politicians have completely exposed their hypocrisy of adopting double standards on human rights issues and using them to maintain hegemony," read the report.

Civil and political rights: 415 gun killings in 2019

The lack of restraint in the right to hold guns has led to rampant gun violence, posing a serious threat to citizens' lives and property safety in the United States, according to the report.

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The number of mass killings in the United States hit a record high of 415 in 2019, with more than one happening for every day of the year, the report said, adding that in total, 39,052 people died from gun-related violence in the United States in 2019 and a person is killed with a gun in the United States every 15 minutes.

The intertwined drawbacks of party politics, election politics and money politics make it difficult for legislative and executive authorities in the United States to do anything about gun control, only allowing the situation to deteriorate, according to the report.

Social and economic rights: The only developed country where millions of people still go hungry

The gap between rich and poor in the United States hit a 50-year high in 2018 as the Gini Index of the country grew to 0.485, according to the report.

In 2018, the richest 10 percent held 70 percent of total household wealth. The bottom 50 percent saw essentially zero net gains in wealth over the past 30 years.

While some 39.7 million people were living in poverty in 2018, the U.S. Congress has refused to raise the federal minimum wage of 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour for a decade. 

In the meantime, the health gap between the United States and countries with the same level of development continues to widen, as 13.7 percent of U.S. adults were uninsured at the end of 2018, up from 10.9 percent at the end of 2016, said the report.

Discrimination suffered by ethnic minorities: A country of white Anglo-Saxon Protestants

The United States is still a country of white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, where all other races, ethnic groups, and religious and cultural communities endure various levels of discrimination, the report said.

As a vestige of slavery and racial segregation, African American adults are 5.9 times more likely to be incarcerated than white adults. It also highlighted the infringement on the rights of Native Americans, who usually experience more deaths, poverty and higher unemployment rates.

Discrimination and violence against women: Homicides, sexual assault

Women in the United States were 21 times more likely to die by firearm homicide than women in peer nations, the reported said, adding that sexual assault cases against women kept increasing.  

Workers hold signs outside 14th Street Park across from Google offices after walking out as part of a global protest over workplace issues in New York, November 1, 2018. /VCG

Women in the United States still face systematic, broad and institutional discrimination, with shocking overt and covert gender discrimination in various forms, the report said.

Living conditions of vulnerable groups: No improvement

A homeless person reads a book on a street while panhandling during freezing temperatures on 5th Avenue in New YorK on February 16, 2018. In the winter, thousands of homeless in the U.S. struggle to survive on the streets, while cold weather, snow, and storms put them at risk of life threatening illnesses. /VCG

While levels of extreme poverty worldwide had dropped dramatically, the poverty ratio of U.S. children was about the same rate as 30 years ago, according to the report. 

It also noted that one in four Americans with disabilities faced unique challenges in securing employment and establishing financial security.

Abuses suffered by migrants: 'Zero-tolerance' policy and abuses

Demonstrators wearing orange jumpsuits and hoods over their heads rally to demand closure of the detention camp at the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, outside the White House January 11, 2019, in Washington, D.C. /VCG

In recent years, the U.S. government has adopted increasingly strict and inhumane measures against immigrants, in particular the "zero-tolerance" policy which caused the separations of many immigrant families, the report read.

It noted grave abuses at detention facilities for immigrants, including injecting them with sedatives, keeping them in handcuffs and depriving them of clothing and mattresses.

U.S. human rights violation worldwide: Sanctions, wars and more

The United States had been engaged in wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Yemen, causing enormous civilian casualties and property losses, said the report.

It pointed out that the economic embargo against Cuba and the unilateral sanctions against Venezuela imposed by the United States had been a massive and flagrant violation of the human rights of people in these countries.

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The report also said that the United States withdrew from several multilateral mechanisms, including the UN Human Rights Council and the UN Global Compact on Migration, shirking off its international obligations and making trouble for the international governance system.

(With input from Xinhua)

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