Iran denounces U.S. as "biggest violator of human rights" in annual report

TEHRAN, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Marking the American Human Rights Review and Exposure Week on June 27-July 3, Iran highlighted the human rights abuses of the United States as the "biggest violator of human rights."

"Iran is one of the countries which has been severely affected by the U.S. instrumental use of the human rights. Nowadays, the U.S. imposition of unilateral coercive sanctions has turned into a tool to violate the human rights of the Iranian people," the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in its annual report on U.S. human rights.

ECONOMIC TERRORISM

The U.S. "cruel sanctions and the economic terrorism" imposed against Iran negatively impact Iran's production, employment, and national revenues, as they have weakened economic return, reduced revenues, and led to a social gap that has downgraded the standard of living for Iranians, the Iranian report said.

It slammed the U.S. sanctions for mainly targeting Iran's lifeline, the oil export. As a result, a severe reduction in Iran's national revenues led to "the debilitation of the Iranian government in preserving and improving the fundamental infrastructures in the country."

It said that the lack of access to the international financial system and disruption in payment processing systems have "critically disturbed Iran's participation in international partnerships in such projects, and it has failed to develop and renovate the country's industries."

Specifically, Iranian aviation companies and shipping lines have failed to acquire necessary spare parts, equipment and services for the maintenance and upgrade of their fleet, which endangers the safety of air passengers and increases the risk of water contamination from ship leakages.

BREACH OF RIGHT TO HEALTH

Washington's unilateral sanctions have also caused "irreparable damage" to the health of the vulnerable members of the Iranian society, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said, adding that the negative impact has been "very tangible and destructive."

For instance, the sanctions have prompted international healthcare companies, in fear of the U.S. punitive measures, to stop cooperation with their Iranian partners. This has led to disruptions to the supply of medical equipment and goods as well as pharmaceuticals needed for treating the COVID-19 patients in Iran, it said.

The ministry mentioned that the Iranian people with mental and physical disabilities face problems in accessing quality medicines and equipment as a result of the U.S. sanctions that keep foreign suppliers away from Iran.

Furthermore, the high rate of sanctions-related inflation has decreased the purchasing power of the elderly people in the country and increased their medical costs, significantly.

U.S. HYPOCRISY

The Iranian report censured the U.S. hypocrisy for failing to protect the human rights of many of its own citizens while claiming to be an advocate of human rights and pointing a finger at other countries.

In the United States, "there is no meaningful monitoring of the violations of the rights of minorities such as Muslims and people of color within the United States where hate-mongering is widely pursued by officials and police forces," it said.

"The United States is, by no means, qualified to talk about the issue of human rights," said Kazem Gharibabadi, secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights.

Likewise, the U.S. "does not even respect the rights of its own citizens, but it claims to defend human rights in other countries," he pointed out.

"Racial discrimination, women's rights, and the right to exist are examples of human rights violations in America. For example, the number of black prisoners is four times that of white prisoners," the Iranian human rights chief said.

After the murder of African American George Floyd by a white police officer and subsequent protests against police brutality, "U.S. police are still using similar levels of lethal force, and they are still not facing the consequences," reported Iran's Tehran Times.

"It's safe to say white Americans enjoy a privilege in a country that self-proclaims itself as the flag bearer of democracy and beacon of human rights in the world," it added.