Institutional racism in the American justice system and the sustained tragedy of Gitmo have allowed autocratic nations ready ripostes when called out on their human-rights abuses. China, a communist capitalist country with no tolerance for free speech, has been one to particularly turn the tables in recent years. In a Spiegel interview conducted by Bernhard Zand, artist Ai Weiwei addresses this dynamic. An excerpt:

Spiegel:

Only two or three years ago, China was defensive when questioned about human rights issues. Now officials often reverse the accusation: What about the cases of racism in the United States? What about the violation of privacy by Western secret services?

Ai Weiwei:

No state or society can claim to have established human rights once and for all. What we have seen in the US lately is shameful. I use this word advisedly. If people are being abused or even killed during an arrest, this is highly disturbing. There are many cases and layers of racist behavior in the US — from police treatment to the issues of education and job opportunities. In America, however, such cases are being discussed publically.

Spiegel:

And in China?

Ai Weiwei:

China is at a different stage of development, human rights are violated here much more often. And still, we see improvements even here. There is the current case of a policeman who shot a man at a railway station right in front of his family. At least, there was a public investigation against this policeman (which cleared him of wrongful action in the first instance). Something like this would never have happened only a few years ago, never. Such a case would have been dealt with as an “internal police matter,” no one would ever have heard of it again. This can’t be done anymore. The Internet has established a public sphere and developed a pressure which the government can no longer ignore. We should use this public sphere and redefine — beyond China’s borders — what a government is allowed to do, where its powers end and where the realm of a citizen’s privacy begins.•