Beijing Takes Aim At US Politicians Over Protests

Mainland state media took aim at the US government over the weekend as many American cities were gripped by raging protests and clashes, comparing the unrest with the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

Beijing has long been infuriated by criticism from Western capitals, especially Washington, over its handling of the pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong last year.

And as unrest erupted across the United States over racial inequality and police brutality after the death during arrest of an unarmed black man, government spokespeople and official media launched broadsides against American authorities.

Mainland media also circulated video clips suggesting Hong Kong police were "restrained" in comparison to actions seen in the US.

"US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi once called the violent protests in Hong Kong 'a beautiful sight to behold.'... US politicians now can enjoy this sight from their own windows," Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of nationalist tabloid Global Times, wrote Saturday.

It was "as if the radical rioters in Hong Kong somehow snuck into the US and created a mess like they did last year", he added.

As violence broke out in the US over the weekend, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying also took aim at Washington.

"I can't breathe," she said on Twitter, with a screenshot of a tweet by US State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus that had criticised the Chinese government over its Hong Kong policy.

Hua was quoting the words George Floyd was heard saying repeatedly before his death – after a police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes – which sparked the current unrest in the United States.

Over the weekend, mainland media also circulated video clips of the US violence, accompanied by the hashtag "How restrained are the Hong Kong police" on the Twitter-like platform Weibo. (AFP)