China strikes back at U.S., pointing out American human-rights abuses
The country that tortures political prisoners, censors speech, holds secret trials and forces Muslims to violate Ramadan rules is once again criticizing the human-rights record of its rival, the United States. China on Friday accused the U.S. of discriminating against minorities and said its 5.7-per-cent January unemployment rate poses a “threat to people’s basic right of survival.” The Chinese report was published a day after the U.S. State Department released its annual report on human-rights conditions in the world. It included criticism of China, saying “repression and coercion were routine” and accused criminals “face executions without due process.” The tit-for-tat battle of reports is not new. This is the 16th time China has responded, and it did so in a strident tone: “The U.S., a self-proclaimed human rights defender, saw no improvements in its existent human rights issues, but reported numerous new problems,” the report said, according to the Xinhua news agency. The