[World Report] China equates US Capitol riots with Hong Kong protests

Chinese media also report heavily on the recent invasion of US protesters in the Capitol, where five people died.

Among Chinese media, media with strong nationalist tendencies such as the Hwangu Times and Global Times, which are sister magazines of the People's Daily of the Chinese Communist Party, have repeatedly criticized the so-called “double standards” of the United States.

Global Times cited the reaction of Chinese netizens and reported that the US Capitol riot was'Kimbo'.

It is a "karma" for the U.S. supporting protests in Hong Kong in the past.

A common feature in these articles is the expression "a beautiful sight", as referred to by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Earlier, House Speaker Pelosi described it as a "beautiful sight" after a massive protest against the extradition law in Hong Kong in 2019.

The Global Times said, "(Even during protests against the repatriation law) Hong Kong protesters raided the legislative building," and said, "Now this'beautiful sight' is taking place in the United States."

The media posted a picture posted by a netizen, which the US protesters believed to have occupied the office of Congressman Pelosi, and said, "Pelosi can enjoy a'beautiful sight' even at his office desk."

In a column, Hu Si-jin, the editor-in-chief of the global time signal, argued in a column that "we have to let her (Pelosi Speaker) describe how beautiful the US Capitol situation is."

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's remarks also became a mockery of Chinese netizens.

During the protests in Hong Kong, Secretary Pompeo said, "I support the citizens of Hong Kong," but during this protest in the United States, "lawlessness and riots are absolutely unacceptable."

The Global Times continued, "American politicians have long called mobs from other countries to'free fighters'," and "Now finally faced retaliation."

Not only the Chinese state media.

Even the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs came up and pinpointed the'double standard' of the United States.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chun-ying said at a regular briefing on the 7th, "In 2019, protesters in Hong Kong severely damaged legislative facilities and attacked the police, but the Hong Kong police showed a high degree of restraint, so no one died."

Then he asked, "What word did the US officials, lawmakers and the media use about Hong Kong at the time?" and "What word do they use about the United States now?"

He pointed out that Hong Kong protesters are glorified as'beautiful sights' and'democratic heroes', while US protesters are condemned as'mobs','extremists' and'villains'.

Spokesman Hwa Chun-ying continued to speak on the 8th.

Hwa asked reporters, "Why should Hong Kong accept things that are not acceptable in the United States?" and "Why should'freedom' not allowed in the United States be allowed in Hong Kong?"

As much as the United States condemned violent protests, it was intended that violent protests should not be allowed in Hong Kong.

A spokesman for Hua said, "We are firmly opposed to interfering in China's internal affairs in the name of'democratic freedom'."

should be considered, but it is difficult to find a Chinese article comparing the root causes of the protests, only highlighting the violence of the protests in the US and Hong Kong.

The 2019 Hong Kong protests, challenged by the Chinese media and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are an extension of the Hong Kong democratization protests that began in the so-called'umbrella revolution' in 2014.

Protesters demanded a straight line for the Hong Kong executive and opposition to the repatriation of criminals to China.

In short, it is asking for the recognition of Hong Kong's system, which is different from China.

Following the peaceful protests, some protesters were violent, giving the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities an excuse for repression.

On the other hand, this protest in the U.S. began in a violent manner.

The purpose of the protest was also to disagree with the results of elections conducted according to democratic procedures.

The former was a protest for democracy, and the latter was a protest against democracy.

Violence cannot be justified in any way.

However, if the purpose of the protest and the pattern of development are not considered, and only some phenomena are identified, one side will be unfair.

In this regard, spokeswoman Hwa Chun-ying said, "The Hong Kong protests were agitated by outside forces. The reason I think that what happened in Hong Kong and the United States is different is because we are obsessed with the superiority of Western supremacy and ideological prejudice."

“Efforts to understand China must be done first,” emphasizing the difference between the regime and the Western world.

However, few foreigners agree that the protests in Hong Kong were caused by outside forces.

If foreigners' understanding of the Chinese system is lacking, then the Chinese persuasion should take precedence.

This is not the only time that the Chinese media and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have criticized the US'double standard'.

When protests against racial discrimination spread in the United States in the wake of the death of George Floyd in May last year, the Chinese media and foreign ministry compared the protests in Hong Kong, even when US authorities declared the protests as riots and repressed them.

At that time, the protests can be compared to those in Hong Kong in that they were protests for the universal values ​​of humanity, such as'anti-racism','human rights' and'life'.

While advocating for protests in Hong Kong, we can pinpoint the double standards of the US authorities who criticized the protests at the time.

But it seems too much to put the pro-Trump supporters' intrusion into the US Capitol in line with the protests in Hong Kong.