‘Karma’, ‘retribution’ and ‘deserving’ were some of the words used by the Chinese state media to describe the siege and violence on the US Capitol building on Wednesday.
Chinese state-affiliated media Global Times, in a series of tweets, also likened the siege on the Capitol by Trump supporters to the pro-democracy protests that Chinese territory Hong Kong is seeing.
Criticising the US politicians like Mike Pence for lending support to the protests in Hong Kong, Chinese media Global Times, said that ‘netizens in China’ saw the chaos at the Capitol building as ‘revenge’ for American ‘double standards’.
"Chinese web users still remember the distress and anger they felt when they saw rioters in Hong Kong storming the Legislative Council Complex, scrawling graffiti, smashing and robbing items, and, instead of condemning the violence, US politicians hailed the ‘courage’ of these mobs, Western media praised the ‘restraint’ of the rioters, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even called it a ‘beautiful sight’," an article by Global Times said, adding that the Chinese netizens ‘jeered’ the US siege.
Through the Global Times Twitter page as well, there were constant comparisons between Hong Kong and the US siege.
"We have noted what has taken place in the US and we believe that the American people hope for a return to normal order as soon as possible," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying in a routine press conference.
"Many Chinese netizens are wondering why some politicians and media in the US reacted so differently to a similar situation," Hua said.
"What words did they use about Hong Kong? What words are they using now?" the spokesperson asked. "The mainstream media in the US are condemning the incident, using words like 'violence', 'thugs', 'extremists' and 'disgrace’. What words did they use to describe HK? 'Beautiful sight' and 'fighters of democracy'," she said.
"This contrast in rhetoric as well as the reasons for it are thought-provoking and deserve serious and profound reflection," she added.
The Two Protests
Pro-Trump protesters stormed the US Capitol in Washington DC, on Wednesday, 6 January, in scenes that were broadcast live on multiple news channels across the world.
Members of both Houses of the US Congress were meeting to conduct the vote certifying the Electoral College victory of Joe Biden in the US presidential election. Both Houses had to be evacuated, before the Senate reconvened later.
Recently, the Hong Kong government, under China, used a contentious new security law to arrest 53 pro-democracy activists and politicians for allegedly trying to ‘overthrow’ the government.
This action is the culmination of a series of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong that began in 2019.
(With inputs from Global Times)
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