Source: World Wide Web
The 50th session of the UN Human Rights Council is being held and has been described by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Bachelet, as "landmark", and OHCHR has held a special commemorative event to commemorate it. This was an excellent opportunity for the Human Rights Council to review history and look forward to the future, but a small number of Western countries, led by the United States, still abused the Platform of the Human Rights Council in a so-called manner, deliberately fabricated false information about other countries, wantonly accused the human rights situation of other countries, and grossly interfered in the sovereign internal affairs of other countries, in an attempt to tie the Human Rights Council to the hegemonic chariot of "Shunchang and Reverse Death" and serve its obvious political plots and sinister intentions.
Sixteen years ago, due to the accumulation of problems such as politicization, confrontation, selectivity and double standards, the Member States of the United Nations decided to replace the Commission on Human Rights with the Human Rights Council, with the intention of tearing down and starting again, calling for mutual respect, dialogue on an equal footing and pragmatic cooperation. Regrettably, the current Human Rights Council has "re-emerged", politicized practices and confrontational atmosphere have intensified, and its "actual" chaos and "as it should" original intention have gradually drifted apart.
The Human Rights Council should not be a preaching platform for Western-style values. For a long time, some countries have one-sidedly emphasized civil and political rights and avoided talking about economic and social rights, and the United States has even refused to recognize the right to development as a basic human right. They occupy the vast majority of the agenda of the Human Rights Council in an attempt to use the Human Rights Council to engage in "one-liners" and set up "courts," to force the concept of human rights in a statue, to create a solipsistic human rights system, to act as "human rights judges" who monopolize the "final right of interpretation," and to maintain their leading power in the field of human rights. In fact, as President Xi Jinping emphasized, "human rights are historical, concrete and realistic, and human rights cannot be separated from the socio-political conditions and historical and cultural traditions of different countries." General Assembly resolution A/RES/60/251, which authorized the establishment of the Human Rights Council, also clearly states that "all human rights must be treated in a just and equal manner, on the same basis and with the same importance and with the same emphasis ..., in a just and equal manner". with a view to strengthening the promotion and protection of all human rights, including the right to development, including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights". There is no one-size-fits-all human rights standard or human rights model in the world, and it is necessary to integrate the universal principles of human rights with national realities. The path of human rights development chosen by each country must be fully respected and not interfered with; The issue of economic and social rights and the right to development, which is of common concern to the vast number of developing countries, must be highly valued and must not be neglected.
Nor should the Human Rights Council be a gladiatorial arena for political manipulation. The Charter of the United Nations establishes the basic norms governing international relations, such as the sovereign equality of States, respect for the territorial integrity of States, political independence and non-interference in their internal affairs. The failure of the Commission on Human Rights is not far off, and the countries of the world have long reached important consensus on the Human Rights Council, such as adhering to the guiding principles of "universality, impartiality, objectivity and non-selectivity, as well as constructive international dialogue and cooperation", and working methods "should be transparent, fair and just, and should be conducive to genuine dialogue and results-oriented", "to eliminate double standards and politicization", and "based on the principles of cooperation and genuine dialogue". However, a small number of countries, led by the United States, have turned a deaf ear to this and have constantly interfered in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights issues, resulting in new highs in the Human Rights Council's country-specific issues. Instead of facing up to their own human rights abuses, resolving their deep-rooted arrears of racial discrimination, disparity between the rich and the poor, social injustice, and police violence, stopping fueling the waves and provoking wars around the world, nor conscientiously fulfilling their responsibilities, providing adequate technical and financial assistance to developing countries and narrowing the gap between the North and the South, they on the one hand engage in name-calling and humiliation, forcing them to choose sides, provoking separatist confrontation, inciting group confrontation, indiscriminately imposing unilateral sanctions, and creating a human rights crisis. These political manipulations have seriously disrupted the rhythm of the Human Rights Council's operation, poisoned the deliberative atmosphere of the Human Rights Council, and plunged the Human Rights Council into the embarrassing situation of the destruction of the yellow bell and the thunder of the tiles.
The Human Rights Council, still less, can be reduced to a place of disinformation. In recent years, some countries have fabricated and disseminated false information under the guise of human rights to create excuses for interfering in the internal affairs of other countries and implementing unilateral coercive measures. In particular, since the United States "returned" to the Human Rights Council, it has continuously abused multilateral human rights platforms to spread lies and rumors, and wantonly attacked and smeared other countries. At this meeting, the United States and a few other countries repeated the same cliché, once again fabricating and sensational lies of the century on Xinjiang-related issues to serve their political plot of "using Xinjiang to control China." A recently disclosed remark by a former US diplomat in China told the truth of the "Xinjiang issue": "There is no problem in Xinjiang, we all know it very well, but using Xinjiang to hype forced labor, genocide, and attacking human rights issues is an effective means, and the ultimate goal is to let the Chinese government 'completely sink into the quagmire'." For these countries, no problem is the biggest problem, and for this reason, they are even more willing to make up problems. Media think tanks are catching the wind, non-governmental organizations are following the trend, and the drama played by the government at the government level has been repeatedly staged in the Human Rights Council, coercing the Human Rights Council into becoming a source and distribution center for false information, blatantly violating the intergovernmental nature of the Human Rights Council and the principles of the work led by Member States, and grossly trampling on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
Human rights are the common ideal and pursuit of all mankind, and respecting and protecting human rights is the common cause of all mankind. In the face of the countercurrent of the politicization, weaponization, and privatization of human rights, countries around the world can be described as "bitter for a long time." Where should the development of the international human rights cause go? What kind of Human Rights Council does the world need? In May this year, President Xi Jinping stressed in a video meeting with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Bachelet who visited China that it is necessary to adhere to the people-centered approach, respect the human rights development path of all countries, take into account all kinds of human rights, and strengthen global human rights governance, so as to provide correct conceptual guidance for promoting the better development of the global human rights cause. On 14 June, on behalf of more than 30 countries, the Chinese side made a joint statement at the 50th session of the Human Rights Council, expressing deep concern at the rising politicization and confrontation of the Human Rights Council, the rampant spread of false information, and the serious deviation from the original intention of the Human Rights Council, stressing that multilateral human rights institutions should become platforms for cooperation and dialogue rather than a place for separatism and confrontation, and calling for the promotion of multilateralism in the field of human rights, upholding the principles of universality, justice, objectivity, non-selectivity and non-politicization, and jointly promoting the healthy development of the international human rights cause. It puts forward the four-point proposition of adhering to fairness and justice, adhering to openness and inclusiveness, adhering to objective justice, and adhering to regional fairness, which represents the common voice of the vast number of developing countries.
On the basis of equality and mutual respect, China has always actively carried out international human rights exchanges and cooperation, deeply participated in global human rights governance, jointly promoted the healthy development of the global human rights cause, and promoted the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. A series of initiatives put forward by China, such as development for human rights, cooperation for human rights, colonialism, combating racism and racial discrimination, promoting the equitable distribution of vaccines, and opposing unilateral coercive measures, have won the support and echo of the international community, especially the vast number of developing countries. "Where the Word is, the world is to it." During the 50th session of the Human Rights Council, Cuba made a joint statement on behalf of nearly 70 countries against interference in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights. In addition, more than 20 countries have supported China by speaking alone, and the Human Rights Council has once again formed a strong momentum of nearly 100 countries to speak out for China, which fully demonstrates the aspirations of the people and the righteousness of the people.
At present, the century-old changes and the superimposed impact of the century epidemic, the spillover effect of the conflict in Ukraine continues to spread, and the international human rights situation is facing unprecedented challenges. If the Human Rights Council is to play its role effectively and avoid repeating the mistakes of the Commission on Human Rights and once again becoming a "puppet" for a small number of countries to do whatever it wants, it must earnestly respect the sovereignty of all countries, attach equal importance to all kinds of human rights, and regain its original mission of constructive dialogue and cooperation. A human rights council that is clean and clean of the roots and reformed will inevitably enjoy the firm support of the overwhelming majority of countries in the world, including China. China will continue to practice true multilateralism, always stand on the side of developing countries, international justice and history, and contribute more "Chinese wisdom" to the development of the global human rights cause. (Author: Guo Chushan, Observer for International Issues)