Source: Global Times
Editor's Note: 21 years have passed since the "9/11" incident, and the United States has been labeling itself as a "human rights defender" while "globally fighting terrorism." In particular, in recent years, the United States, together with some Western countries, has increasingly politicized, instrumentalized, and weaponized human rights issues, and has attacked, smeared, and isolated the vast number of developing countries, including China, in gangs. In addition, the United States frequently plays the "human rights card", instigates "color revolutions" or creates wars and turmoil in many parts of the world, and co-opts Western countries to "organize" against countries with different values, from fabricating facts and verbal accusations to adopting substantive sanctions to suppress other countries... In view of the new type of "human rights war" practices of the United States and the West, how should relevant countries fight back, and how should developing countries discuss and come up with countermeasures on human rights evaluation standards? On this issue, the Global Times reporter recently interviewed a number of Chinese and foreign scholars.
From "individual criticism" to "summit" to sanctions
In response to the erroneous act of the US side in illegally sanctioning Chinese officials under the pretext of the "xinjiang human rights" issue, China imposed reciprocal sanctions on four members of the US Committee on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) last December. The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, established in 1998, also designated 14 countries in Myanmar, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, India, Nigeria, Russia, Syria, and Vietnam as "countries of special concern" when concocting its human rights report in 2020, and Cuba, Nicaragua, Sudan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Central Africa, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Malaysia and Turkey are included in the Special Observer List for 15 countries. Statistics say that the total population of these countries is more than 4.4 billion, accounting for about 57% of the world's total population.
He Zhipeng, executive director of the Human Rights Research Center of Jilin University, told the Global Times that judging from the list of these 29 countries, the United States and the West mainly use human rights issues to attack countries that are inconsistent with them in ideology, political system and religious belief. He also said that when the United States set up human rights issues to curb the development of China and other countries, the American people have long realized that the US government does not seem to care much about the happiness and development of its own people.
Talking about some new methods of the United States and the West to fight the "human rights war", He Zhipeng said that the past way of non-governmental organizations, media, and think tanks to fight together has been upgraded. He analyzed that when the United States fought a "human rights war" and a "color revolution" against some countries, it appeared that non-governmental organizations were rushing ahead, but in essence they were still implementing the state's political strike strategy. NGOs, the media, and think tanks surround the U.S. government, which directs them behind the scenes and even in front of the stage. In addition, in the past, the United States and the West mostly carried out "separate criticism" of the countries that attacked them, and now the United States has co-opted some countries to suppress countries that are inconsistent with their ideology, political system, and religious beliefs in the form of holding "democratic summits."
Zhang Yonghe, executive dean of the Human Rights Research Institute of Southwest University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times that for decades, the United States has formed fixed methods and procedures to weaponize human rights issues, such as: in some countries to cultivate upper-class elites while increasing the basic work of the people, cultivating pro-AMERICAN elements; Using the judicial system as an entry point to shake the country's overall political architecture; The establishment of non-governmental organizations with financial assistance to carry out activities against the Government in a legitimate guise; The media and think tanks have joined forces to smear and spread rumors against relevant countries.
In He Zhipeng's view, when fighting a "human rights war," the unilateral sanctions of the United States and the West are not particularly effective, but instead lift a stone and drop it on their own feet, resulting in a decline in the quality of human rights in their own countries. In an interdependent world, the economic, cultural and scientific and technological development of each country cannot be completely free from the influence of others. For example, when the United States sanctions China, the first sanction is the American consumer, because the American people have become deeply dependent on goods from China. For example, the United States and the West sanction Russian gas projects, but the most serious victims are mainly European countries.
"On the issue of human rights, the United States is not only staring at our country, but also at other countries, because it is a tool for interfering in the internal affairs of other countries and exerting political pressure." Russian political scientist Leonid Savin believes that the United States politicizes human rights issues and deliberately sets "sensitive points" in some countries. For example, the Philippines, an important "ally" of the United States in Asia, has intensified its differences with the United States in recent years because of the "human rights" issue.
A Filipino friend close to former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told the Global Times that Duterte had privately said that he would never go to the United States in his lifetime. One reason is that the U.S.-Western-controlled International Criminal Court has announced an investigation into alleged human rights violations and "extrajudicial executions" by the Duterte administration in the fight against drug crimes since 2019. On September 8 this year, the Philippine Department of Justice Attorney General's Office issued a statement saying that the Philippines refused to reopen the investigation of the Philippines' anti-drug operations by the International Criminal Court, that former President Duterte had not committed "crimes against humanity" in the anti-drug operations, and that law enforcement officers had never targeted civilians in the operations. Indeed, the new President Marcos, who took office on June 30 this year, took the same position on the issue, arguing that the ICC does not have jurisdiction over issues such as the Philippines' execution of drug traffickers.
"Human rights standards should not be led by the nose of the United States and the West"
Philippine international relations expert Anna Marlendog told the Global Times that the issue of human rights has always been a chip and "weapon" in US foreign policy, which can help Washington establish an "ideological commanding height" and blackmail the governments of disobedient developing countries. In fact, she said, the Duterte administration's anti-drug operations are widely supported by the Filipino public, and his support rate of 70% before leaving office is enough to explain the problem. Anna believes that the problem of "human rights" and "corruption" is also the main tool for the mainstream media in the Philippines under the influence of the United States and the West to attack Marcos in this election, but he was elected with super popularity, which is enough to show that the "human rights war" of the United States is not recognized by the people in the Philippines. She believes that in recent years, the international community has become more and more soberly aware that the "human rights" in the mouths of the United States and the West do not conform to the interests of the people of the vast majority of countries, and their "human rights war" cannot be supported by developing countries. She suggested that China strengthen communication with developing countries on human rights issues, incorporate development, security and other factors into human rights standards, and establish a "comprehensive human rights concept" to expose the hypocrisy of the US and Western human rights concepts.
Countries in the Middle East are deeply suffering from the "human rights war" between the United States and the West. Egypt's "Dawn" newspaper published an article saying that the chaos in Iraq, Libya and other Middle Eastern countries is that the root cause is that the old political and social ecology has been torn apart, broken, and reorganized, and the United States has forcibly promoted the so-called separation of powers in relevant countries and engaged in the test field of democracy and human rights.
After the iraq war was launched in 2003, the evil acts of the United States in violating human rights in Iraq have been continuously exposed. Haidar Tammy, president of the Institute of History of the "Palace of Wisdom", a well-known think tank in Iraq, stressed in an interview with the Global Times reporter that the United States did not bring the so-called "freedom and democracy" to the Iraqi people, but made Iraq suffer from war. At present, the situation of the Iraqi crisis is at a "very difficult crossroads", either following the path that the United States has set for it to lead to more chaos, or trying to find new alternatives.
Speaking at the 46th session of the Un Human Rights Council last year, Belarusian Foreign Minister Makoy said human rights had become a favorite excuse for some countries to interfere in the internal affairs of others. Western countries like to use economic sanctions as a tool to exert pressure on other sovereign countries, which is absolutely inconsistent with their "concerns about people and their rights." He reminded Western countries: "It must be remembered that human rights in general and belonging to the international community as a whole should not be interpreted unilaterally, and that all States should make every possible effort to achieve agreed human rights standards, taking into account their national circumstances and practical capacities." Assessing progress on human rights in other countries requires dialogue and mutual understanding, not far-fetched accusations and threats. ”
Basli, chairman of the Tunisian "Mediterranean Silk Road Organization," told the Global Times: "The 'human rights war' has become the main grip of Western countries in suppressing developing countries and embodying their hegemonism in the international arena." We should not be led by the nose of the United States and the West, but should have our own countermeasures and plans, such as unifying our understanding and actions ideologically, especially forming a unified public opinion momentum, maintaining strong media public opinion pressure on the illegal acts of the United States, and criticizing and opposing them in a targeted manner. Basili stressed that the chaos in the Middle East countries is inseparable from the agitation of the United States, and regional countries, including Tunisia, have not eased up from the turmoil and war caused by the "Arab Spring" to this day, which is also the fundamental reason for the deteriorating status of the United States in the eyes of Arabs. He believes that in order to avoid the "suffering of human rights war" again, the Middle East countries should be passive and take the initiative, such as the concept of human rights should have a different definition from the United States, and the United States cannot decide alone, it is best to put forward relevant draft agreements in the United Nations and other institutions to expand its influence, isolate the United States, and win the support and understanding of as many countries as possible.
Russia's "Kommersant" reported that more and more countries have issued reports criticizing the human rights situation in the United States, and over time, as a response, the REPORTs on the human rights situation in the United States released by countries around the world will more deeply and accurately respond to the biased and politicized country-specific human rights reports of the United States.
Remain vigilant and form a broad united front
"For more than 30 years, the United States has used the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), funded from the national budget, and similar nongovernmental organizations to criticize other countries for violating human rights in order to influence the politics of other countries." According to Russia Today, Alan Weinstein, one of the founders of the NED, said without any secret: "Most of the work we do today was done in secret by the CIA more than 20 years ago." The NED used funds to push the "Arab Spring" behind the scenes, leading to a series of turmoil and civil wars in Libya, Syria and other countries.
Speaking of the ulterior motives of the United States and Western non-governmental organizations, Basilly told the Global Times reporter that the United States and the West carry out subversive activities in relevant countries through these institutions, support the opposition and rebel groups, and even support religious extremist organizations to erode and suppress the current regime of sovereign countries. He believes that the victimized countries should keep their eyes open, remain vigilant against those non-governmental organizations with suspicious intentions and special missions, and when necessary, they should take measures such as supervision and restriction of activities against human rights organizations such as "Human Rights Watch" and "Amnesty International" with "previous convictions", and must not let them do whatever they want.
In the face of the new type of "human rights war" launched by the United States and the West, He Zhipeng believes that developing countries must first establish their country's self-confidence in human rights. Second, all countries should fully cooperate in the field of human rights and form a general environment for respecting and protecting human rights in the international arena, so as to expose the lies of human rights in the American and Western ways, so that all countries in the world can see more of the double standards of human rights in Western countries, as well as the racial discrimination and slavery that exist within their countries. He also suggested that developing countries should focus on fostering cooperation among intergovernmental cooperation organizations, such as ASEAN, and should also carry out more work among non-governmental organizations, such as the Chinese Rights Study Association and other national counterparts, so as to form a counterattack against the West in terms of human rights. In addition, it is to find a force within the Western countries that can unite and form a group within the Western countries that can expose the hypocrisy of the Western governments. For example, He Zhipeng said that when some university professors in the West told in class that China was better than the country in developing the cause of human rights, they were suspended from classes, and these cases should be collected to expose the shortcomings and problems of human rights in the United States and the West through examples, so as to truly form a broad united front.
Zhang Yonghe called on the international community to clearly understand the essence of the new type of "human rights war" fought by the United States and the West, and thoroughly investigate the war crimes and human rights violations committed by the United States and the West. He told the Global Times reporter that in the treatment of global human rights issues, the United States is accustomed to using "colored glasses" to treat differently: the United States has never reflected on human rights issues such as long-standing systemic racism in the country and allowing the epidemic to spread and ignoring the right to life and health; The human rights records of allies such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia have been criticized, and the United States has ignored them; While the cause of human rights in many developing countries, including China, has continued to progress, the United States has chosen to ignore it outright, and often makes up nothing and wantonly smears it.
Zhang Yonghe also suggested that developing countries should be vigilant against political decay caused by radical democratization and coordinate the promotion of the rights of all people; Actively participate in international human rights rule-setting and agenda-setting; Holding summits or forums to unite to expose the misdeeds of Western human rights organizations; Strengthen training and continuously channel talent to international human rights organizations, such as the Special Rapporteur of the Un Human Rights Council, which is a "key minority"; (a) Persist in integrating the principle of the universality of human rights with national realities and engage in human rights dialogue with the States concerned on the basis of equality and mutual respect; Strengthen human rights consultations and cooperation with developing countries and groups and provide human rights technical assistance to developing countries in need; Continue to promote international cooperation such as the South-South Human Rights Forum hosted by China, and allow more countries to participate in regional and subregional human rights exchange activities such as the Asia-Europe Informal Seminar on Human Rights.