The Chinese-language website of Deutsche Welle on Tuesday published a commentary entitled "Maintaining critical dialogue with China is more important than ever." The article is filled with clichés about so-called "human rights issues in Xinjiang," which are not worth reading. But the phrase "critical dialogue" in the headline is intriguing. It is in fact the main attitude of the US and other Western countries in communicating with non-Western nations in recent years.
This is, in most cases, an unconscious revelation of American and Western elites' inner feeling of superiority. But now they put it forward consciously and promote it as an "effective way" to deal with China. This cannot be explained simply by "pride and prejudice." They did not articulate it in the past, but Western countries have been practicing and enhancing the so-called critical dialogue with China. It has become an approach or even a weapon in the West's strategic game with China. In other words, they are trying to "lecture" China under the cover of "dialogue."
In global interactions, disagreements are common. It is also normal to express different views or even criticize without mincing words. However, equal dialogue cannot be based on the premise that some values are superior to others. It also cannot be only one party lecturing or accusing the other. The US and the West's "critical dialogue" is condescending, and the implied logic is that only they have the ability, qualification and power to determine right and wrong. This means that one party already claimed the moral high ground before the "dialogue" even begins, which dwarfs the development level and moral image of other countries.
Colonialism has long been discarded as something despicable, but Western-centric power structures and mentality have not disappeared completely. Colonialism has been subtly transplanted into various aspects, lurking in Western political language and communication methods. Some elites in the US and the West, with a strong sense of superiority on civilization, regard non-Western countries as candidates waiting for their "approval." With ideological pointers in their hands, they took to the podium to oversee exams, judge papers, and then grade them based on the "performance" of these countries to determine whether they passed the exam. As for the standard of scoring, it is drawn by the US and the West according to their own historical and social formations, and "Western-centrism" is the only correct answer in all the exams.
In their eyes, only the West is right, civilized and advanced, while those who differ from them are branded as "evil," barbaric and backward. They forcibly create a dichotomy between "civilization" and "barbarism." On this fictional premise, they attach moral labels on different practices of other countries, trying to dwarf them in image so that they can "attack others from a high position" as they wish. It is for this reason they recklessly fabricate the lie of "genocide" in Xinjiang, audaciously call for "punishing China" by various means, and frantically threaten to bomb China "back into the Stone Age."
Sometimes, arrogance is a kind of overbearingness; sometimes, it is also a kind of deep inferiority. In the face of the rise of emerging market countries, including China, and their own troubles, the US and other Western countries are becoming increasingly overwhelmed. Faced with the narrowing gap between them and emerging market countries, they have to rely on slogans of "human rights" and "democracy" to maintain their "absolute advantage." The reason why they are so sensitive to their position in the dialogue is that they are aware of the disappearance of the absolute advantage they used to have. As a result, they have to deliberately highlight their discourse power to maintain the obsolete power structure behind it, which has become a subconscious reaction.
Even in the fields of human rights and democracy, the US and the West are increasingly lagging behind, relying only on slogans, posturing and fist-pumping to show their "self-esteem," which is actually laughable to the rest of the world. The West's self-confidence is collapsing, as the democratization of international relations is increasingly popular and as developing countries' awareness of their rights is strengthening. Today, if someone still wants to engage in colonialism and ideological hegemony, or even imagines leading other countries by the nose like livestock, no country with national pride and a sense of independence will obey.
Returning to the "critical dialogue," China has never been afraid of criticism, but firmly opposes hegemony. Times have changed, and US and Western elites should learn to be equal and respectful. Dialogue is necessary, and we welcome "constructive dialogue," but we reject "critical dialogue." We would also like to remind that a condescending posture is dangerous, because the farther you are from the ground, the harder you may fall.
Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Thursday sternly refuted the allegations of “genocide” made
by the US and the UK over human rights situation in China's Xinjiang region, after the two countries took a Security Council meeting on
international law and maintaining peace and security as a chance to attack China on Xinjiang-related issues. They have also called on another “investigative” trip to Xinjiang on Thursday after they found that the UN human rights chief's recent visit to Xinjiang had failed to support their “genocide” fallacies about the region.
After frequent gun shooting cases nationwide in the US
that caused heavy casualties, including children, the White House and Capitol Hill are trying to show that they are trying to find a solution
under pressure from society, as US President Joe Biden said Congress "must act to pass gun control legislation."
The US, whose flag flies over 750 military bases in more than 80 countries and regions, seems to
be sitting on pins and needles after witnessing China sign ONE security cooperation framework agreement with the Solomon Islands. On Tuesday
local time, US President Joe Biden met with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in the White House. Their “shared concern” about China's
security agreement and “China's Pacific ambitions” were soon placed under the spotlight of Western media outlets.
` ` MAN and nature are running out of time. That’s
the core message of the UN Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change
...
` In short, historically it was the Church that gave the moral blessing for colonisation, slavery and genocide during the Age of Globalisation.
The tragedy is that the Doctrine of Discovery is now embodied in US laws.
Native Americans, refugees from US-initiated wars, Floyds and children separated from their parents at the border will remember
the US as the greatest “human ...
The masks covering the true face of the US were taken off one after another through the seven stories the Global Times had
published over the course of the past few weeks. These masks are engraved with words such as peace, liberty, security, unity, science, humanity, and global order, hiding the country's true visage that has been distorted with lust, greed, and subjugation.
The masks covering the true face of the US have been removed one after another through the seven investigative stories the
Global Times published over the course of the past few weeks. These masks are engraved with beautiful words such as peace, liberty,
security, unity, science, humanity, and global order, hiding the country's true visage distorted with lust, greed, and subjugation.
Fanning the flames to create turmoil, using economic and financial hegemony to sanction opponents, and forming cliques to create
political isolation - the US is using its hegemony to undermine the international order.
In fact, the US government's approach is quite similar to Voldemort's -
they both believe in power, recruit followers, use violence, and repeatedly want to kill competitors in order to maintain supremacy.
Harvard & Cambridge: China's Era Already? You Bet!
Danny Haiphong. Photo:Courtesy of Haiphong
Editor's Note:
For the Chinese people, the past decade was epic and inspirational. The country, under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, has made great endeavors in boosting its economy, deepening reforms, improving the rights of its people and acting as a responsible power globally.
To help understand China's progress in the past decade, the Global Times (GT) has launched a weekly series of interviews with scholars from home and abroad, presenting a holistic view of China's governance philosophy. The following is an interview with Danny Haiphong (Haiphong), an independent journalist in the US and co-editor of Friends of Socialist China as well as a founding member of the No Cold War international campaign, on how China has made human rights protection a priority and how it has taken human rights moral high grounds.
GT: The US Department of State issued the 2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices on April 12, of which 90 pages are used to criticize China's human rights conditions. At the same time, 2021 was considered to be the US' most fatal year in history with more than 460,000 Americans killed by the coronavirus last year. Why does the US care more about human rights of China and other countries than its own record?
Haiphong: The US has politicized human rights for several reasons, none of which have anything to do with genuine concerns about the wellbeing of people. Constant speculation about human rights elsewhere provides a distraction from the shortcomings of the US' own political and economic system. The US possesses an abhorrent human rights record. An average of three Americans per day are killed by US law enforcement. Nearly one million Americans have died of COVID-19. US wars abroad have taken the lives of millions and destabilized entire regions.
Human rights are also an integral component of US foreign policy. Any nation deemed a threat to US hegemony is condemned for human rights violations. Often, the allegations are unfounded. This is certainly the case in relation to China. The US has spread insidious lies about the so-called human rights violations in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Hong Kong Special Administration Region (HKSAR) to justify sanctions and military encirclement. The US' politicization of human rights is not only hypocritical, but a true danger to humanity.
GT: Since the outbreak of the epidemic, China has prioritized the protection of people's lives, what kind of human rights views do you think this reflects?
Haiphong: China's approach to human rights is people-centered. People come first. China's dynamic zero-COVID strategy is a case in point. Human life is the top priority. This priority has mobilized the entire society in a successful war against COVID-19 which has kept the death toll very low.
This doesn't mean tradeoffs do not exist. The protection of human life amid a deadly pandemic means that uncertainty and hardship are inevitable. But it is the people-centered human rights approach which keeps China and its legitimate leadership, the Communist Party of China, forward on the path to becoming a modern socialist country by 2050.
GT: How do you see the influence the "coexistence with the virus" policy has had on the US and other Western countries? Western media are attacking and smearing China's zero-COVID strategy. Why do they suggest China should also "lie flat" in its fight against the epidemic?
Haiphong: The politicization of COVID-19 in the US and other Western countries has created a public opinion crisis. Not only have large numbers of people been misinformed about COVID-19, but many have been convinced that China is to blame for their disastrous conditions. The truth is that the US and its Western allies neglected their domestic and global obligations to properly address the pandemic in the interests of humanity. Now these same countries want to see China plunged into a crisis through the abandonment of its successful strategy to contain the pandemic.
The reasons for this are simple. For one, China abandoning the zero-COVID strategy would validate the endless smears that the US has leveled against it. Furthermore, the US views China's zero-COVID strategy as a threat to its hegemony. This may seem silly, but it does have a material basis to it. China's zero-COVID strategy offers hope that COVID-19 deaths and cases can be reduced without completely sacrificing economic growth. The US knows that should China abandon this path, all of its progress would be threatened. This best serves the US' narrow and selfish interests.
GT: Chinese President Xi Jinping has emphasized unswerving adherence to China's path of human rights development, saying living a happy life is the biggest human right for the people. Over the past years, many surveys conducted by Western institutions showed Chinese people's rising levels of satisfaction with the government's performance. What does this demonstrate? How do you comment on China's human rights views?
Haiphong: Widespread popular satisfaction with China's government is an indicator of legitimacy. China's socialist governance system serves the people. Human rights development is thus much broader in China than in the West. Economic freedom, or the freedom to a livelihood without poverty, hunger, homelessness and instability is a top priority.
China's socialist governance system has built a foundation of legitimacy with the people by serving their needs and giving them real reasons to believe that their lives will be better than prior generations.
China's own human rights views are driven by deep experience with other political systems. During the "century of humiliation," various political models were imported from the outside without success. This includes the colonial and feudal systems in the 19th century and the Western democratic model in the early 20th century. Only the socialist conception of human rights has been capable of bringing prosperity and a better life to the Chinese people.
One further note. Legitimacy and human rights development in China isn't a paternalistic affair. The interests of the people not only drive policy in China but the Chinese people possess numerous mechanisms to participate in the running of the country. This means that while China prioritizes economic human rights, political human rights play an important role in facilitating a balanced and harmonious society.
GT: The definition of human rights in the US and the West has become narrower and narrower. They place too much emphasis on political rights while ignore the most basic human rights to survival and development. Why don't the most basic human rights such as people's rights to health, survival and development get enough attention in the West?
Haiphong: The West has for centuries been driven by a model of development that places profit accumulation over the rights of the people. And it isn't just a benign profit that drives all development in the West, but capitalist profit which tends to concentrate wealth in the hands of a few private investors and monopolies. The anarchy of the market reigns supreme, and it is private monopoly capital which essentially dictates government policy. People's need for housing, gainful employment, and healthcare are viewed as profitable ventures in and of themselves. This means that their administration is built around exploitation rather than human development.
The US, for example, is the so-called richest country in the world yet has millions of people without healthcare, a place to live, or a job that can satisfy the basic needs of survival. Hundreds of thousands of people sleep on the street each night, and still more find themselves filing for bankruptcy due to medical debt. Students attending university carry with them the weight of more than a trillion in collective student loan debt to private loan servicers and banks. Political parties in Washington DC hold the view that these issues are incapable of being resolved but that private military and financial institutions should be subsidized in the hundreds of billions. The US political system doesn't just ignore the needs of the people, it proactively worsens the economic situation for the majority.
GT: What is the significance of China's human rights proposition for redefining human rights worldwide, especially for developing countries to explore their own path in human rights development and protecting people's fundamental rights?
Haiphong: China's position on human rights provides a model for countries with shared histories of Western-imposed colonialism and development. Sovereignty and respect for self-determination are prerequisites for these countries to choose their own development paths. Unfortunately, due to unilateral measures such as sanctions and unequal trade arrangements, the US and the West have prevented many countries the opportunity to exercise sovereignty in their development paths. This has caused great suffering and strife worldwide.
China's approach to human rights prioritizes sovereignty and the right to development, and these principles have been applied to the implementation of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Economic development serves everyone, not just rich investors inside or outside of China. Furthermore, China's economic growth has not been achieved through isolationism but rather robust cooperation with all countries on the basis of equality. Developing countries seeking to both exercise their sovereignty while also reaping the benefits of increased global connectivity can look to China as a model of how the rights of the people do not need to be sacrificed for economic growth and vice versa.
White flags are seen on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the
United States, on Sept. 16, 2021. More than 660,000 white flags were installed here to honor the lives lost to COVID-19 in the United States.Photo:Xinhua
` `
The US hit a record high of 543,928 daily new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday. The number of new deaths reached 3,023 the same day. For two consecutive days, new COVID-19 cases in the US have exceeded 500,000. Behind each startling number is an unfortunate live and family. As the epidemic hits new records again and again, Washington is ending 2021 in an extremely somber way, and its fiasco will go down in history.
`
The previous record of new COVID-19 cases was a figure of 294,015 recorded on January 8, one day after the confirmation of Joe Biden's presidential election victory by the Congress. After taking office, Biden made control of the epidemic a top priority and launched a series of prevention and control measures. Many thought that the record on January 8 would be the peak, and even the most pessimistic person at that time probably couldn't have imagined that a new record would be reached by the end of the year. The White House has a new president, but the epidemic is raging even more widely. In 2021, the US still presents the world with chaos, disorder and contradiction in its fight against the epidemic.
`
Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik wrote in his article, entitled "Farewell to 2021, the stupidest year in American history," that "instead of unity and immunity, this year has brought us stupidity and insanity on an unimaginable scale." He argues that COVID-19 is surely "the focus of the most obtuse and ignorant public reactions and state and local policy responses to any crisis in American history." Some media outlets commented that a sense of powerlessness over political confrontation, social rifts and rampant anti-intellectualism has further dissipated expectations of a united response to the epidemic.
`
As the country with the most advanced technology and top comprehensive strength, the US has the strongest financial and medical resources, moreover, it only has a population of 329 million people. But two years since the COVID-19 epidemic broke out, over 810,000 people have died of the pandemic. Under the so-called democratic system, nobody is held accountable for such a huge loss of human lives. People don't even know who is responsible for fighting the pandemic under the US President. "Human" is left out of human rights: such an absurd logic just happened in a modern society.
`
People found that the death toll has a much smaller impact on politicians in Washington than the number of votes and the ups and downs of the stock market. In developed countries with advanced medical conditions and better welfare systems, we have constantly seen cruel scenes of social Darwinism: The poor are facing a higher risk of being infected and witnessing a higher death rate. Some medical institutions have even given tacit permission for "selective treatment" of impoverished patients or those of ethnic minorities.
When a large number of ordinary families are caught up in financial difficulties due to the epidemic, the assets of billionaires have risen significantly. According to a recent report by Business Insider, 52 members of the US Congress were found to have concealed their technology, pharmaceutical or other stock trades, violating the STOCK Act. They were suspected of taking advantage of the turmoil of the epidemic to make a fortune out of national crisis through engaging in insider trading.
`
What's currently happening in the US is a humanitarian catastrophe and a human rights disaster. But those "human rights preachers" are either at a loss about what to do, or they just turn a blind eye to it. Apart from being symbolically mentioned on occasional commemorative ceremonies, the misfortunes of the broken families and individuals have been collectively neglected. The "human" has been left out of US' "human rights," that's why the economy has been put above human lives and saving the stock market is considered more important than curbing the epidemic.
`
In 2021, under the scourge of the COVID-19 pandemic, the US has defeated the US, and the true nature of the "human rights defender" has been exposed. We feel sympathy for the American people who have suffered miserably from the pandemic, while having a more sober understanding of the hypocrisy of the US-style human rights
The virtual "Summit for Democracy" held by the US kicked off on Thursday, but Chinese analysts said that Washington just ...
Democracy should reflect the will of the people. But what happens when that will is ignored? The U.S. describes itself as a democratic country. Yet, it has rampant gun violence and racial discrimination, widening social inequality, needless overseas wars, and the worst record of COVID-19 deaths globally. In an original two-part series, CGTN takes a hard look at how democracy is slowly eroding in the U.S. and how it may spread throughout the world if not stopped. Join us for "U.S. Democracy: A reality check," only on CGTN. #WhoDefinesDemocracy#WholeProcessDemocracy
'Summit for Democracy': How a single toxic hornet hijacks a group of bees
Illustration: Chen Xia/GT
The US-initiated "Summit for Democracy" began Thursday night Beijing time. Several hours before its opening, Pakistan, which was among the participants the US had invited, announced that it would not attend. Pakistan's announcement triggered much discussion. In addition to the heated discussion of why the US invited certain countries and regions but did not invite some others, the latest topic has taken the real theme of "democracy" away.
The US has used much of its strength to snub China and Russia and controversially defined which country or region is democratic and which is not. The forces it tries to curry favor from are definitely not as many as it has offended. It must be said that the US has become so fragile that it has to go around in such a big circle to beg for a little support. The result is destined.
Democracy is not achieved by talking big, but by a country's arduous work. Democracy is not the franchise model of chain stores where the US formulates rules and rations ingredients, with the same cartoon character of an old guy standing in front of each entrance. The team of US President Joe Biden must have eaten too much KFC and McDonald's when they were young.
Biden convened this "summit for democracy" at a time when US national governance, including its democratic system, was criticized the most. From the West's point of view, the summit should be held as a "criticism summit" against the US. The US has been a drag on Western democracy, and this is the major reason why Western democracy has felt a sense of crisis. Discussions about the US' "decline" have flooded the world's public opinion field. From the COVID-19 fight to anti-racial discrimination, the US has not done anything worthy of being put on a window display in the West. Western democracy has lost its face by following the US.
The very purpose of this "summit for democracy" is to use a big pomp to remind the world: The "declining" US you talk about is still the boss and other countries should choose the right "big brother" to follow. Washington wants to form a "democratic gang," but the world has turned that old page long ago. Even street singers use QR codes to get paid nowadays.
Some say that the "summit for democracy" may become one of Biden's few political legacies. But is it pitiful for Biden? No wonder some Chinese people said ironically that even the head of a county in China is more practical and capable than the US president.
This so-called summit for democracy is bound to be a hypocritical exposition of all kinds of international political machinations within the US-led gang. This conference in the name of "democracy" will definitely be nailed to the pillar of shame in history, just because it deepens the divisions of the world and intensifies confrontation between major powers. In this sense, it may be regarded as the "political legacy" of the Biden administration, but definitely a negative asset.
It's a joke that the US, trapped in the COVID-19 epidemic, even dares to summon a "summit for democracy" and attempt to give a voice to democracy when it has just run away from Afghanistan, the "laboratory for democracy." A swarm of innocent bees is being hijacked by a toxic hornet who teaches them to sting, not to produce honey.
A farce is being staged. The world did not host an infrastructure summit, an education summit or a poverty alleviation summit, but the US created a "summit for democracy." So far, what has caused the most global deaths are the COVID-19 pandemic that ravages across the world, as well as the Western-style "democracy" imposed by the US and West on developing countries. The US didn't have to hold a "summit for democracy." It would be best for it to open its border and let refugees from Third World countries who suffered immensely from Western-style democracy enter its territory and enjoy "authentic democracy."
US President Joe Biden arriving to deliver his remarks at the virtual
Summit for Democracy at the White House in Washington DC. — AFP
THIS week the United States hosted an online “Summit for Democracy” (Dec
9-10), which it claimed was to “focus on challenges and opportunities
facing democracies” and to “defend democracy and human rights at home
and abroad”.
Unfortunately, it might end up to be nothing but an attempt to divide
the world into opposing political camps and advance the US’S own
strategic agenda with democracy as an excuse. If so, the meeting
couldn’t be further away from the spirit of democracy. China firmly
opposes the move by the US, one that is dominated by Cold War mentality
and which seeks to incite ideological confrontation and risks creating
new divisive lines in the international community.
With this summit, the US seeks to empower itself to determine who is
democratic and who is not based on its own liking, and measure the
merits of other countries’ democracy with its own yardstick. This is, in
fact, privatisation and labelling of democracy and will make the
“Summit for Democracy” itself undemocratic.
The world today is facing pressing global challenges such as an ongoing
pandemic and climate change, and some countries, including the US, are
troubled by a worsening democracy and many domestic problems. Under such
circumstances, countries have every reason to prioritise the needs of
the people, advocate unity and cooperation, and strive for development
and progress.
Perhaps the last thing a responsible major country should do is to turn a
blind eye to its own problems and scapegoat others politically.
Ironically, it is the people who have to pay the price at the end of the
day.
While upholding democracy at home, countries should also support
greater democracy in international relations, uphold the Un-centred
international system and the international order based on international
law.
Efforts are also urgently needed to practice true multilateralism
and make global governance more inclusive. These are the shared
aspirations of the international community and meet the trend of our
times. Unfortunately, the US summit did not indicate if it would advance
these goals, seeming instead to make itself a disruptive factor.
China believes that democracy means, in essence, that people are
the masters of the country. Democracy is practiced to meet people’s
needs, bringing the people a decent and happy life and progress for the
country and beyond.
Having seen a number of successful and failed cases of democracy
worldwide, countries across the world must have come to realise one
thing: true democracy will only dawn when it is deeply rooted in a
country and fits well with its own national conditions and stage of
development. Efforts to mechanically copy the political systems and
democratic models of others have never worked and never will. Neither do
attempts to impose one’s own political will on others.
When it comes to China’s case, the Chinese people have followed
the political development path with Chinese characteristics and created
the model of whole-process ....
Indian media were dismayed that their Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been advised to attend the US-proposed so-called Summit for Democracy and reminded Indian authorities to be wary of the US playing tricks behind the summit, pointing out that the ...
How many evils have been committed in the name of democracy?
Exporting wars, launching "color revolutions," fomenting extremist ideologies, and promoting economic instability... the US has left endless trails of bloodshed and turmoil around the world. While the "model of democracy" loses its shine, the US still attempts to establish
...
US' act around the Beijing Winter Olympics is like posing while nude, and that is not art
China has lodged solemn representations and expressed strong opposition to the US' "diplomatic boycott" of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and will take firm countermeasures, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, while Chinese and foreign experts said the US is making itself a joke not only by announcing a boycott of the Games that had not invited US politicians and also by citing lies of "genocide" against China as an excuse to politicize the Olympics in an attempt to create momentum for its upcoming democracy summit.
On Monday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said that the Biden administration will not send any diplomat or official representation to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympic games, citing "genocide" and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang and "other human rights abuses."
The US has been fabricating the biggest lie of the century about so-called "genocide" in China's Xinjiang region, which has been refuted by facts. Based on ideological biases and lies, the US is trying to disturb the Beijing Winter Olympic Games. The US practice gravely violates the principle of political neutrality enshrined in the Olympic Charter, runs counter to the Olympic motto of "together" and stands on the opposite side of global athletes and sports fans, Zhao Lijian, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, told a press conference on Tuesday.
Zhao noted that the Winter Olympics is not the platform for posturing and manipulation. According to Olympic rules, officials are invited by their?respective National Olympic Committee to attend the Olympic Games. Whether the US officials will come to the Beijing Winter Olympics and root for their own athletes is the US' own business.
Despite not even being invited, the US side linked its officials' attendance with the so-called human rights issues in Xinjiang, going down the wrong path further by distorting facts while cheating themselves as well as others. The US political agenda wins no supports and is doomed to fail, Zhao said.
US President Joe Biden and some politicians were hyping a boycott of the Beijing Games. However, the Global Times learned previously from sources that as the host country, China never planned to invite US and Western politicians who hype the "boycott" topic.
No one cares whether US politicians will come or not and it has no impact on the success of the Beijing Games, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the US, tweeted on Tuesday.
The White House announcement on Monday was also mocked in the US and on Twitter. Nikki Haley, the former US ambassador to the UN, tweeted that "A diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics is a joke. China doesn't care if Biden and team show up. They want our athletes."
Ben Norton, an assistant editor of the US news website the Grayzone tweeted that "The Biden admin is acting like its diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Olympics in Beijing is a brave move for 'human rights,' but China openly said for weeks that the US was not even invited. This is the political version of a petulant child shouting, 'Well, I didn't wanna go anyway!'"
Adnan Akfirat, president of the Turkish-Chinese Business Development and Friendship Association, who openly opposed the US politicizing the Olympics, described the US decision as "a futile effort" and it is also ridiculous to say that those who haven't already been invited won't attend.
There is a proverb in Turkish. "The rabbit is offended by the mountain!" Akfirat told the Global Times.
In a statement on the US boycott on Monday, the International Olympic Committee said that the presence of government officials and diplomats is a purely political decision for each government, which the IOC in its political neutrality fully respects. At the same time, this announcement also makes clear that the Olympic Games and the participation of the athletes are beyond politics, and we welcome this.
Low-cost try
Since there is no invitation for US politicians to attend the Beijing Games, why it is still keen on hyping the topic? Analysts from China and overseas said that US attempts to use the "cheap shot" to humiliate China, but it only exposes its own malicious moves of politicizing the Olympic spirit.
Tom Fowdy, a British political and international relations analyst, told the Global Times on Tuesday that the Biden administration's announcement is "fueled by obvious opportunism. It is adecision which allows them to whip up anti-China sentiment, but comes with very little sacrifice or cost."
The US is attempting to smear China in a low-cost way since US politicians have realized that if clashes or confrontations are intensified or lead to the military field, the risk may be too great to bear. They chose to "boycott" the Beijing Olympics - a diplomatic stunt to showcase the US presence and "leading role" in values, Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday.
However, such a move is absurd. The unilateral boycott without an invitation in advance is a very cheap political gesture. It is as ridiculous as I say that I will boycott going to Mars," Lü said.
Psaki told the Monday press conference that US athletes will be participating in the Beijing Games and they will be "rooting for the athletes from home."
The US wants to display its "humanity" by saying that athletes would come to the Beijing Games, but it is the US that initiated the hype of a boycott of the Games based on completely fake "genocide" allegations, putting numerous athletes' careers at risk, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times.
The US' tactic of politicizing the Olympics also hit a new low as it chose to announce the boycott a few days before the so-called democracy summit, Li said, noting that the boycott is like a signal for the US to mobilize as many forces as possible to smear China, to pressure other countries to choose sides and to verify its global influence.
The US is scheduled to hold the Democracy Summit on Thursday and Friday this week, which has been criticized by observers for bringing new confrontations and dividing the world by ideology.
The Democracy Summit, which Biden plans to use as the symbol of the so-called "US is back," has "illogical and pathetic" criteria to divide democratic and non-democratic countries. "If democracy is the rule of the people for the people, the most anti-democratic country is the US," said Akfirat.
Graham Perry, a British solicitor and international arbitrator, told the Global Times that the issue of the US' diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympic has to be seen within the bigger issue of the rise of China and the relative decline of the US.
The West likes to portray China as a vicious, oppressive 'dictatorship' but facts show the opposite. For example, China has lifted 800 million people out of poverty and protected more people from COVID-19. So the West "invents" genocide allegations in Xinjiang to damage China, and as China becomes more successful, more lies would be told about China, Perry told the Global Times.
Who would follow?
While Chinese and foreign experts criticize the US for politicizing the Olympics and using the sports event to pressure other countries, they noted that the majority of countries will keep away from such a political move and not follow the US.
When responding to whether the US is trying to get other allies to join the US in the "diplomatic boycott," Psaki told the Monday press conference that "we have informed them of our decision, and obviously we will leave it to them to make their own decisions."
As of press time on Tuesday, no country has announced it would follow the US in boycotting the games. After the US' announcement, media in Canada and Australia reported that their politicians urged their governments to make a similar decision.
Maybe two or three countries will follow the US but no more, Lü said, noting that following the US in making such a decision should take long-term consequences into consideration especially if it will make a difference in the long run, especially for how the Chinese people feel about those countries.
New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson said on Tuesday that New Zealand will not be sending diplomatic representatives at a ministerial level to the Beijing Winter Olympics, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason, and added that the decision was made in October.
Wang Dazhao, a Beijing-based senior sports commentator, told the Global Times that the US "diplomatic boycott" of the Beijing Games has nothing to do with sports but all about politics. The boycott of the 1980 Olympics had left a very bad lesson for the world. The US now is carrying on the Cold War mentality to make another one, which is unpopular since the world has changed.
Wang said the US boycott has no impact on the Beijing Games but showed to the world how it intends to destroy a country's efforts to host a sports event. "The US is taking the initiative to bring destruction and in the future, which country would still be willing to host the Games since their efforts could be easily ruined by politics?"
China US Illustration: Liu Rui/GT
Danny Haiphong. Photo:Courtesy of Haiphong
