How the US weaponized “Human Rights” against China: Study

THE U.S. WEAPONIZED the concept of human rights to hurt China, using it for decades to harm attempts by Chinese organizations and individuals to create relationships with people outside its borders, a new study says.

It painted China as the motherlode of human rights violations, although this was not remotely true. Yet it was hard to get a more truthful account circulated, since the mainstream media provided a relentless flow of selected stories to reinforce the myth.

“Western NGOs, ostensibly concerned with human rights, disproportion­ately focused on alleged violations in China despite much worse abuses occurring elsewhere in the world,” says "Why the World Needs China", an acclaimed 400-page study of the place of China in the modern world, by US author Kyle Ferrana.

DOUBLE STANDARDS

“The U.S. government continually attempted to censure the PRC before the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, while ignoring other countries’ egregious abuses; and the Western press exclusively covered negative news in China, selec­tively focusing only on individual cases that were not representative of actual conditions,” the book says.

The double standards above were clearly identified in a study published in the Cornell International Law Journal, Ferrana points out—but the mainstream media’s unfair coverage continued unabated.

“Meanwhile, though it did have shortcomings, China’s actual human rights situation was far better than the average country in its income class in nearly every category,” Ferrana writes.

METICULOUS RESEARCH

And the human rights insight is just one observation in the US author’s new book, a meticulously researched and wide-ranging review of what is really happening in China, and how its system of governance works, blending concepts of socialism and capitalism into something unusual—and intriguingly successful.

With a huge list of sources, both Chinese and Western, the author shows exactly how the Chinese keep surprising the world, starting with a powerful example: China, the land of old-fashioned black bicycles, rapidly transitioned into being the pioneer in next generation electric cars and buses – and at a global level, no less.

Shocked, the US responded by abandoning the fundamental principles of capitalism and competition to keep Chinese cars out.

TWISTED WORDS

Ferrana points out that reality can be distorted by subtly twisting words and concepts to create negativity. So Western journalists frame their reports on China with terms that have dark associations.

“There can be no criminals in China, only political prisoners who have been falsely accused; neither are these political prisoners kept in prisons, for there can be no prisons in China, only prison camps,” he writes.

Similarly, write-ups about mainland China, or Hong Kong, or Taiwan, divide everyone into good guys (pro-US) and bad guys (everyone else).

In the media: “If any Chinese people speak pos­itively of the Party, this can only be the result of the government’s brain­washing. Those who speak critically of the Party, however, are always brave and clear-thinking truth-tellers, soon to be ‘disappeared’ by the government; when they are seen in public thereafter, their reappearance must somehow be ‘staged’ by the government.”

The author’s careful research and clarity of writing makes this an excellent example of professional reportage, and the achievement is impressive, given that Ferrana is an independent author with a background in US technology, not an academic in the China studies field.

REALITY IN HONG KONG

Hong Kong people will be surprised and grateful to find a US writer who understands their nuanced position, unlike the western establishment which tends to portray their home as an oppressed city filled with people who are disappointed their society hasn't become like ‘Murica.

A 2019 poll by Reuters (a UK-originated news agency highly critical of China) found that only eight per cent of Hong Kongers expressed a strong desire for Hong Kong’s independence from China.

While the western media uniformly blamed Beijing for the unrest in Hong Kong, only 12 per cent of Hong Kong people accepted that allegation, the book says.

INTERFERENCE

Ferrana points to the obvious political interference by notorious US groups such as the National Endowment for Democracy, which spent decades giving millions of dollars to anti-China groups.

By encouraging and financing the growth of pro-US groups such as the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, the west could ensure the availability of China-hostile people to hit the streets—and then western reporters would interview them as if they represented the Hong Kong people, rather than the western paymasters discreetly financing them.

“According to the Berlin-based Latana Democracy Perception Index Report, by the spring of 2022 a two-thirds supermajority of Hong Kongers believed that Hong Kong did not need more democracy, and most held a positive view of mainland China,” Ferrana writes.

The violent arson-filled series of protests in 2019 are to this day painted as being a noble series of “pro-democracy marches” but that was never the case. “While there is some genuine desire for more democracy in Hong Kong, statistically, it is unlikely to have been the largest or even a very significant factor behind the mobilization,” Ferrana writes.

THE REAL ASIA

For people who live in Asia (about 60 per cent of the world’s population), the book will elicit grateful nods of appreciation. It is filled with observations that match what we see in front of our eyes – but which we can never find in the pages of the Economist, FT, Guardian, or other international media.

But perhaps the most valuable point Ferrana makes is very simple. Yes, China differs from the west—but being “different” doesn’t automatically mean “bad”.

In fact, given the mounting problems of the west, there’s plenty of evidence that China’s system of governance has lessons that the world can learn from. China has taken much of what is good in capitalism, but retained a strong streak of socialist thinking—a healthy mix that keeps the economy on a middle path, and does wonders to alleviate poverty.

The country prioritizes aims such as “common prosperity” using its firm control. This firmness enables China to get things done. It makes mistakes, but it often hits difficult targets.

Example: The US is in a decades-long fight with itself on whether it should take action against climate change, while China quickly got into a position where it is already leading the world in the transition to clean energy, such as solar and wind, by a wide margin.

Why does the world need China? Because it is an experimental model of a different way of running society – and has had a number of remarkable successes in that role.

"Why the World Needs China" has just been published but is already being widely praised. London-based author Carlos Martinez summed up the book with these words:

“Ferrana creates a compelling and inspiring narrative about Chinese socialism and China’s place in the world, and in so doing, demolishes a range of popular myths: that China has ‘gone capitalist,’ that it is an imperialist power, that it is a serial human rights abuser.”

This book is a must-read. Even if you don’t read long books, buy it anyway – and keep it on your shelf to use as a reference if anyone brings up the topic of Hong Kong, Tibet, Xinjiang, Taiwan, or any of the other concepts that have been weaponized against China.

And when someone brings up “human rights”, send them a link to this article.

https://fridayeveryday.com/us-weaponized-human-rights-to-keep-china-down-new-study/

For more commentary from Nury Vittachi, check out the YouTube video below:

by Nury Vittachi

Lai See(利是)

** The blog article is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the position of our company. **

The US–Iran war keeps everyone guessing. American forces made a show of force by blockading the Strait of Hormuz, with combat seemingly on the verge of breaking out — yet Trump suddenly shifted to a softer tone, suggesting both sides could return to the negotiating table within days and that extending the two-week ceasefire wasn't necessary. A deal may be within reach. But given his habit of reversing course, everyone would do well to wait and see before celebrating. While the Iranian situation churns with uncertainty, Ukraine's plight has quietly been forgotten — President Zelensky left to wither alone.

In an interview with German broadcaster ZDF, Zelensky made no effort to hide his distress. Since America launched its campaign against Iran, he said, Washington has completely lost interest in Ukraine. Not only have negotiations ground to a halt, but arms and military equipment deliveries have abruptly stopped — precisely as Russian forces are pressing their offensive hard, leaving Ukraine in a dangerously exposed position.

Iran stole America's attention — and Ukraine paid the price. Talks frozen, arms cut off, Zelensky vents to German TV.

For the first time, Zelensky has come to understand that America, for all its self-image as a superpower, simply cannot stretch across multiple fronts without showing its limits. When the "big boss" proves unreliable, the "junior partner" is left to fend for itself.

Washington's Attention Has Shifted

Zelensky has had his fill of being sidelined, and the bitterness has finally spilled over. He told ZDF that after the Iran war began, America's focus visibly shifted. Special Envoy Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Kushner — the two men who had been mediating between Washington and Moscow — are now "constantly in talks with Iran," leaving no bandwidth for Ukraine. As a result, peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have been frozen since late February, with no timeline in sight for their resumption.

What makes matters worse is that Trump, already overwhelmed by the Iran campaign, has quietly shelved the Russia-Ukraine file and stopped pressing Putin. Zelensky warned that without pressure, Russia has nothing to fear and will act with impunity. Putin has clearly read the situation. After a 32-hour Orthodox Easter ceasefire, Russian forces resumed their offensive immediately, seizing the opportunity to push for an advantage.

The Air Defence Crisis

The bigger crisis isn't the stalled talks — it's the weapons shortage. Zelensky pointed out that US military aid deliveries have slowed to a crawl, with air defence systems the most acute problem. Supplies of PAC-3 and PAC-2 interceptor missiles have shown serious gaps, and Ukraine could soon be left effectively "undefended," forced to watch helplessly as Russian missiles and drones fly in unchallenged.

Ukraine's air defences are running on empty. Interceptor missiles are critically short, and Russian strikes keep coming.

The reason Washington cannot deliver comes down to the Iran campaign itself. Since the war began, Iran has fired multiple missiles and drones at US military bases in Gulf states and at Israel. American forces have burned through enormous quantities of interceptor missiles countering these attacks, stockpiles are nearly depleted, and replenishment has no quick fix. The only option has been to rob Peter to pay Paul — redirecting air defence equipment destined for other countries to the Middle East, with Ukraine inevitably caught in the fallout.

Watching this crisis unfold, Zelensky is in a panic. Unless a US–Iran ceasefire materialises, there is little hope of American arms deliveries resuming. Ukraine has been forced to rely on itself, rushing to produce its own "FP-5 Flamingo" air defence missiles as a stopgap — though even that amounts to a distant rainstorm that cannot quench today's fire.

Adding insult to injury, Trump — in a bid to boost global oil supply and hold down rising prices — granted a 30-day sanctions waiver on Russia, allowing countries worldwide to purchase Russian oil and natural gas. The result: Russia pocketed an effortless €6 billion, turning the war into a windfall that helps fund its military campaign against Ukraine.

America Stepping Back From Europe

The "big boss" cooling on Zelensky is not entirely a matter of bandwidth. It also reflects a deliberate intent to distance America from Europe and leave the continent to clean up the Ukrainian mess on its own.

A recent development makes this attitude plain. According to Politico, War Secretary Hegseth will skip Wednesday's meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group — a forum that brings together defence ministers from over 50 pro-Ukraine nations — sending Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby in his place. Hegseth's snub signals clearly that the Trump administration no longer treats Ukraine as a priority.

Zelensky's predicament is a tragedy largely of his own making. He placed too much faith in the American "big boss," believing that with Washington firmly in his corner, he could go all-in against Russia. Today, he has finally learned the hard way: this "big boss" cannot manage multiple wars at once. Bogged down in Iran, America has no capacity left to care whether its "junior partner" sinks or swims.

Lai Ting-yiu