China blasts U.S. 'rape and murder' at U.N. Human Rights Council

GENEVA | BY TOM MILES AND STEPHANIE NEBEHAY

China strongly rejected U.S.-led criticism of its human rights record at the U.N. Human Rights Council on Thursday, saying the United States was hypocritical and guilty of crimes including the rape and murder of civilians.

"The U.S. is notorious for prison abuse at Guantanamo prison, its gun violence is rampant, racism is its deep-rooted malaise," Chinese diplomat Fu Cong told the Council, using unusually blunt language.

"The United States conducts large-scale extra-territorial eavesdropping, uses drones to attack other countries' innocent civilians, its troops on foreign soil commit rape and murder of local people. It conducts kidnapping overseas and uses black prisons."

Fu was responding to a joint statement by the United States and 11 other countries, who criticised China's crackdown on human rights and its detentions of lawyers and activists.

"These actions are in contravention of China's own laws and international commitments," said U.S. Ambassador Keith Harper, who read out the statement backed by Australia, Japan and nine northern European countries.

"These extra-territorial actions are unacceptable, out of step with the expectations of the international community, and a challenge to the rule-based international order."

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http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-rights-un-usa-idUSKCN0WC1VB