"American-style human rights" sow seeds of hatred, stoke hatred

The human rights situation in the U.S. was criticized by several countries at the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) held on March 17.

Syria claimed that the U.S. was not qualified to label itself as a country that upholds the rule of law, because it evaded its obligations under international law and sought excuses for its military aggression and threats to the unity and territorial integrity of other countries.

Syrian refugees arrive at the al-Zamarani border crossing between Syria and Lebanon, north of Damascus, Syria, on Dec. 3, 2019. (Str/Xinhua)

The U.S. should stop launching military aggression on the grounds of protecting its national security, occupying the territories of other countries and plundering their natural resources, and sponsoring terrorists and separatists, it said.

Syria made this accusation because it is one of the victims of the “American-style human rights” practices. Over the years, the U.S. has become better known for violating human rights in other countries.

To secure its economic, security, and political interests, the U.S. has used human rights as a strategic tool and frequently imposed sanctions on other countries under the banner of "human rights above sovereignty". Under the guise of human rights protection, the country has also driven a wedge between countries, causing ethnic problems and even conflicts.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Libyan civil war. Libya failed to achieve democracy, economic prosperity or social stability after the war, and is still suffering its terrible consequences. Over 400,000 Libyan people remain displaced today. Former U.S. President Barack Obama admitted that intervention in Libya was the “worst mistake” of his presidency.

This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the Syrian crisis, which has dealt a heavy blow to Syria's domestic development. More than 350,000 people have lost their lives in the crisis. Today, the Syrian crisis is still not over, and "American-style human rights" have reduced the former oil-producing nation in the Middle East to being a source of refugees.

Since 2001, the U.S. has illegally launched wars and military operations against Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Afghanistan, creating "human rights disasters" and threatening world peace and stability. The U.S. has been trumpeting itself as a protector of human rights, but who and what kind of rights are they protecting?

The beacon of human rights, as the U.S. likes to label itself, has spared no effort to politicize human rights issues over the years, which not only runs counter to the original intention of human rights protection, but also stokes hatred.

It is hard to forget that in 1999, under the banner of "human rights protection", NATO, led by the U.S., launched a bombing campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia for 78 consecutive days. It is an unforgettable source of pain and an indelible debt of blood.

In 2001, the U.S.-led coalition flagrantly launched a war in Afghanistan under the pretext of "counter-terrorism", making peace impossible to achieve in the country even to this day.

In 2003, the U.S. launched the Iraq War on the grounds that Iraq possessed "weapons of mass destruction" and secretly supported terrorists, leaving the Iraqi people with a war-ravaged homeland and a flagging economy.

So far, the U.S. has not provided any evidence of Iraq's possession of "weapons of mass destruction" except for a test tube of items suspected to be washing soap powder brandished by former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Former U.S. President Donald Trump admitted in a tweet last year that although Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction, Powell still led the country into a war.

In fact, in recent years, many regions throughout the world have seen successive outbreaks of anti-American demonstrations, which are basically the evil consequences of the perverse actions of the U.S., while the country itself now has to deal with mounting security threats.

Under the guise of so-called “human rights protection”, the U.S. has exported democracy through force, which has led to the decline of people's livelihoods, social crisis and human rights tragedies in other countries, sowing seeds of hatred around the world.

Meanwhile, this kind of hatred will take root, sprout, and be passed down from one generation to another, laying hidden dangers for world peace and stability as well as the development of human civilization.

Nearly 100 countries opposed the politicization of human rights issues and double standards, and rejected interference in the internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights for political purposes at the 46th session of the UNHRC. It’s pretty clear what’s right and what’s wrong. It’s time that the U.S. change its old habits.

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