In the plan, China said it would lift 60 million people out of poverty by 2020, lower the incidence of tuberculous, control air and water pollution, strengthen efforts to prevent \u201cinterrogation by torture\u201d and encourage fair trials, and even protect citizens\u2019 \u201cfreedom of speech on the Internet in accordance with the law.\u201d<\/p>\n
As in other human rights-related reports,<\/a> through much of the report Beijing seems to be equating human rights with economic prosperity. In contrast, the UN\u2019s Universal Declaration of Human Rights<\/a> forbids torture, \u201ccruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,\u201d and \u201carbitrary arrest, detention or exile.\u201d<\/p>\n China also plans to export its idea of human rights, including recommending \u201cChinese experts\u201d to the UN\u2019s Human Rights Council, consulting with the other BRICs nations, and providing \u201ctechnical assistance in human rights field demanded by other developing countries.\u201d<\/p>\n Critics pointed out that the plan was issued by the Information Office of the State Council, China\u2019s propaganda department, instead of being made by the country\u2019s legal entities. Essentially, it is \u201cChina\u2019s diplomatic public relations program to handle pressure from the international society,\u201d said Gao Wenqian, a senior policy advisor from Human Rights in China, a New York-based activist group. \u201cIt is used to cover up the real human rights situations in China and trick the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Chinese human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang was found guilty of \u201cinciting ethnic hatred,\u201d and \u201ccreating a disturbance.\u201d(REUTERS\/Tyrone Siu)<\/p>\n After comparing the new \u201caction plan\u201d with the past ones, Gao told Quartz that China\u2019s recommending Chinese experts to the UN Human Rights Council<\/a> \u201cshows China\u2019s plan to put an insider into the United Nations,\u201d just as the Monkey King defeated Princess Iron Fan by drilling into her belly in the Chinese novel Journey to the West<\/em>.<\/p>\n China is looking to tell \u201cother dictators how to deal with international society on human rights issues,\u201d said Gao, referring to China\u2019s plan toprovide technical assistance<\/a> to developing nations.<\/p>\n More than 300 human rights lawyers or activists<\/a> had been detained or were still missing in 2015 alone, according to a June report from Human Rights in China. Private information and conversations are being used against them. \u201cSocial media posts<\/a> and screenshots of private dialogues<\/a>(link in Chinese) on China\u2019s most-used chatting app WeChat can be used as court evidence,\u201d said Gao.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s like promoting the rule of law, whereas at the same time while cracking down on human rights lawyers and tightening freedom,\u201d Maya Wang, researcher at Human Rights Watch\u2019s Asia branch. The group\u2019s review on China\u2019s first human rights action plan<\/a>concluded that the Chinese government has failed to deliver on its commitments<\/a>. If China really wants to improve human rights, \u201cthe first step should be releasing human rights lawyers like Xia Lin<\/a>,\u201d who was sentenced to 12 years in jail last week (Sept.22), Wang said.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/qzprod.files.wordpress.com\/2016\/09\/pu-zhi-qiang-human-rights.jpg?w=650\")
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