UN review can introduce China’s human rights progress

China will undergo its third Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council in Geneva from November 6 to 9, a routine review of the human rights records of all 193 UN member states. Yet the Voice of America (VOA) claimed in all apparent seriousness that “activists urge deep scrutiny of China” over “its treatment of ethnic minorities.” VOA Chinese was more straightforward, saying China will face serious interrogation at the UN for its training centers in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

It sounds like China is going to court. The truth is, the review “provides the opportunity for each State to declare what actions they have taken to improve the human rights situations in their countries,” according to the UN website. It is not aimed at China, which voluntarily accepts the review and has already submitted its National Human Rights Report to the UN.

Yet Western media like VOA have a bad habit – tending to talk about human rights as a condescending judge. Such self-righteousness is like the emperor’s new clothes. Though they seize the opportunity to put the screws on China, however, they will only be disappointed. China’s human rights reports will unveil China’s progress in this regard probably also including its practice of governance in Xinjiang.

China is exploring a new path of improving human rights with its Xinjiang policies. Take the training centers. They provide opportunities for victims of extremism to learn Putonghua, national laws and vocational skills.

While outsiders only focus on the government’s iron fist policy, they overlook the frequent violence in Xinjiang, which once suffered terrorism akin to clashes in the Middle East. Any secular government would spare no effort to maintain regional security and order in the region. Is that a violation of human rights?

China is giving preventive counterterrorism measures a try, promoting education and training in vocational skills, helping people with minor criminal records to avoid becoming victims of terrorism and extremism. China believes reducing the number of terrorists is better than killing them. Is that against human rights?

Thanks to China’s reform of governance measures aimed at maintaining stability and improving education in Xinjiang, terrorism and religious extremism have been effectively curbed. Criminal cases have plummeted as the sense of security among local people has skyrocketed. Xinjiang’s tourism industry has witnessed a robust growth.

This is the progress of human rights and this is only a microcosm of all China’s advance in human rights. The country is presenting the globe a new way for world human rights development.

There is no universal path for human rights development. Absolutely perfect human rights can be found nowhere. Every country has the right to find its own course. When Western people and media consider themselves judges of human rights, they might as well listen to China’s voices, look at the reality of developing countries and think about their own human rights situation first.