The Unjustified Criticism of High Commissioner Michelle Bachetlet’s Visit to China

As former UN rapporteurs we are committed to the promotion and protection of human rights in all corners of the world, including China. Progress can only be achieved on the basis on good faith implementation of the UN Charter and UN human rights treaties, and requires patience, perseverance, and international solidarity.

The Unjustified Criticism of High Commissioner Michelle Bachetlet’s Visit to China

US Coerces UN Human Rights Chief Following Xinjiang China Visit

Jun 11, 2022 — In the wake of the UN human rights chief’s visit to Xinjiang, China – the Western media and US government-funded organizations have concluded that the UN is not sufficiently repeating Western claims about China’s alleged treatment of its Uyghur minority.

In reality, the US is spreading false narratives about China just as it did regarding Iraq in 2003 – all to undermine and isolate China on the global stage in a bid to prevent it from surpassing the US, and because the US is not capable of competing with China fairly.

US Coerces UN Human Rights Chief Following Xinjiang China Visit (Odysse) — The New Atlas on YouTube

Sources:

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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visits China

A blow for Western diplomacy: the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Chilean national Michele Bachelet, has just completed a six-day visit to China, looking in particular for evidence of the “Uyghur genocide”, but had to leave empty-handed. Going back 17 years, none of her predecessors has ever set foot in China.

Ms. Bachelet interviewed several dignitaries, heads of associations, religious leaders and witnesses at large. She even paid a visit to Kashi prison, but could find nothing that conflicted with the official Chinese version.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visits China

Related:

Statement by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet after official visit to China

US keeps manipulating high-profile UN Xinjiang visit to attack China: FM

Western Propaganda.

*Xinjiang*

[1999] CIA’s War Against China

by Ralph McGehee, December 1999

The US has again asked the UN to condemn China’s human rights record. Our nervousness over this issue is increased by the scheduled reversion of Hong Kong to Chinese rule next year. The condemnation request has been accompanied by a barrage of media stor ies about China’s treatment of orphans, the Laogai prison system, the lack of political freedom and other issues. Observers of international political developments will recognize such stories as the standard accompaniment of operations by the CIA/NED to alter or overthrow target governments. The US corporate-owned media, in league with government agencies, orchestrate media coverage to demonize states in conflict with corporate plans. (Many of the media stories seem to be generated by the “privately funded” US-based Human Rights Watch/Asia). Once and if the Chinese government is changed and serves well the corporate state, even if any abuses multiply — we will hear no protest.

CIA’s War Against China
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Alarmism About China Distracts from Ongoing Western Imperialism

West projecting its own image onto China when labeling it imperialist

According to many Western commentators—from the center-left to the far-right—China is the major threat to democracy, climate, peace and sovereignty in the 21st century. It is an issue where Donald Trump and Joe Biden are completely aligned. On the other side of the Atlantic too, Nigel Farage and Keir Starmer are closing ranks behind a sinophobic story-line.

Alarmism About China Distracts from Ongoing Western Imperialism

About The Source of Those Satellite Images

“Massacre,” downloaded from: Yahoo News/Business Insider.
“Mass grave,” downloaded from Westword (Archived).

Twitter Thread by antiwar_soldier (Archived)

As noted by a previous post, six months ago, about Sino-Indian Relations:

Maxar provides 90% of the foundational geospatial intelligence used by the United States Government for national security and keeping troops safe on the ground.

Maxar

Maxar’s customers (think tanks, defense contractors, & intelligence agencies)

Westminster Company Maxar Captures Satellite Images of Ukraine Conflict:

From its headquarters in Westminster, Maxar is keeping the federal government informed about ground conditions in Ukraine. For the past two decades, the company has worked with the National Reconnaissance Office’s EnhancedView program, which allows the NRO — which manages America’s spy satellites — to gain additional imagery from private outfits.

Along with the U.S. government, Maxar has partnered with private businesses and overseas allies including Ukraine to provide up-to-date images throughout the conflict. All of the imagery is unclassified.

The NRO pays Maxar $300 million a year to provide imaging along with other data-related services. “Maxar is one of three electro-optical commercial imagery providers on contract with the NRO and provides commercial imagery in support of NRO’s mission in providing data to more than 500,000 government users in the Intelligence Community, the Department of Defense, dozens of federal civil government agencies, allies, and mission partners,” says the NRO spokesperson.

Dan Jablonsky, CEO of Maxar, says one of the important parts of the company’s work is providing news organizations imagery that promotes transparency, helps reduce the spread of misinformation, and shows the realities on the ground in Ukraine.

Maxar Technologies — The eye in the sky tracking invasion of Ukraine (Archived):

One of these companies is Maxar, headquartered in Colorado, USA. Maxar traces its history back to the 1960s on its website though its current incarnation’s roots lie in Worldview Imaging Corporation, aka DigitalGlobe

During the late 1990s and early 2000s, DigitalGlobe forged close links with the US government, being licensed to launch commercial image-gathering satellites – technology that had previously been dominated by the world’s militaries. Contracts in the hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars reportedly followed.

The company’s close links to the US government persist. In 2019, NASA awarded it the contract for building a Moon-landing module, while this year Northrop Grumman won a $935m habitation module contract that required integration with a propulsion module being built by Maxar. Three years ago it reportedly sold its space robotics arm MDA for $765m.

NRO’s strategy to buy satellite imagery shaped by thriving commercial market:

The NRO [National Reconnaissance Office] is the U.S. intelligence agency responsible for developing, launching and operating the nation’s spy satellites. It is also the primary acquirer of commercial imagery for the federal government.

Maxar Technologies is the NRO’s sole supplier of commercial high-resolution satellite imagery under the EnhancedView contract, a deal that dates back to 2010 when NGA [National Geospatial Intelligence Agency] selected two imagery providers — DigitalGlobe and GeoEye. By 2012, government spending cuts forced NGA to slash its imagery budget by half. EnhancedView subsequently was reduced from more than $7 billion to about $3.5 billion, which led to the merger of the two companies under DigitalGlobe.

The NRO pays Maxar $300 million a year for access to the former Digital Globe’s WorldView-1, WorldView-2, WorldView-3 and GeoEye-1 satellites, as well as the company’s image archive. EnhancedView was a 10-year deal set to expire in 2020 but when the NRO took over the management of the contract, it added three one-year options worth about $300 million each. The agency so far has exercised two one-year options, extending the contract through August 2022.

[Chris] Quilty said Maxar is expected to remain the largest supplier of imagery to the U.S. government but it is almost certain that Planet and BlackSky will get some share of the EOCL contracts.

Interesting comments on satellite images and propaganda: Are These Satellite Images War Propaganda?

Screenshot from New York Post on China’s “internment camps.”
Screenshot from WaPo on “forced labor” in China.

See *Xinjiang* regarding China’s “internment camps & forced labor.”

Related: Bucha Notes