BEIJING, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- The so-called "summit for democracy" proposed by the U.S. government -- which is nothing short of a lousy "talk show" of a "democracy lecturer" -- will take the stage soon.
The summit is nothing but a betrayal of the democratic spirit as it attempts to gauge the merits of other countries' democracy with Washington's own yardstick.
The summit's stated goal is to "set forth an affirmative agenda for democratic renewal to tackle the greatest threats faced by democracies today through collective action." The words apparently exude a sense of superiority of being the "beacon of democracy."
Is the United States entitled to judge the democracy and human rights of other countries? Has anyone given it the right to do so? -- are perhaps among some of the pertinent questions that crop up at this point.
The deteriorating situation of democracy and human rights in the United States is visible to everyone. Before "blowing the whistle" on the democratic and human rights situation in other countries, the United States should do some self-introspection first.
It is certainly appalling when a country calls itself a "beacon of democracy" while it cannot even guarantee the rights of its own minority groups. "It is becoming unfortunately apparent that it is almost a tyranny of the majority where the minority right to vote is being denied in many areas, in parts of the country," said Fernand de Varennes, the UN special rapporteur on minority issues, on the final day of his two-week visit to the United States.
Can a country be deemed a so-called "beacon of democracy" when it cannot even protect the right to life and health of its people? As of Nov. 30, the cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States is nearly 50 million, and the cumulative number of deaths has reached about 800,000.
The raging pandemic is intertwined with multiple problems such as economic recession, high unemployment and racial tensions, resulting in a serious divide between the rich and the poor.
Moreover, how can a country be the "beacon of democracy" when a majority of its own citizens complain about its democracy? A recent report by the Pew Research Center shows that only 17 percent of the surveyed see American democracy as a good example for other countries to follow. According to another study by Robert Bosch Foundation in Germany, over 50 percent of the Americans surveyed think their democratic system does not function at all under the current circumstances.
A democracy tainted with "money politics" is a distorted and hypocritical democracy. This has been a raging problem in the United States for over a century. Money politics has resulted in the exclusion of a large number of people from the political process and the realization of political rights.
Money politics has deprived the American people of their democratic rights, suppressed the expression of voters' true will, and created de facto political inequality. The Center for Responsive Politics estimated that the total cost of the 2020 U.S. elections, including presidential and congressional, would near 14 billion U.S. dollars, a sum more than what was spent during the last two election cycles combined.
A distorted democracy bears no good fruit and will definitely not be approved. Since there is hardly a functioning democracy in the United States, how can Uncle Sam act like a "democracy lecturer" and preach about democracy and human rights to other countries? Given its domestic mess, the United States certainly isn't qualified to set an example for other countries.
Democracy is not Coca-Cola, which, with the syrup produced by the United States, tastes the same across the world. However, it is up to a country's people to judge whether the country is a democracy or not.
The whole-process people's democracy in China, an all-dimensional, full-coverage democracy with a complete set of institutions, is the broadest, most genuine, and most effective socialist democracy. It has been proven that the whole-process people's democracy in China works and works well in the country.
China calls for building a community with a shared future for mankind. As residents of the same global village, all countries should handle international affairs through consultation. Democracy is not just about domestic governance, but it should also be reflected in international relations. A truly democratic government should support democracy in international relations. It should not foster hegemony and division abroad while building democracy and unity at home.
Democracy that works for the benefit of all people and brings long-term development prospects to a country is true democracy.
The "talk show" of the "democracy lecturer" is about to begin. If the "lecturer" fails to fundamentally change its mindset and practice, it will only be booed and disdained. Enditem
