China defends itself against Britain's annual human rights report

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regular news conference that China is making progress on human rights, and “any country or person without prejudice will recognize this progress.”

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband issued the annual human rights report just after his visit to China this week. The report released Wednesday names China as one of 22 countries of concern.

“A worrying number of people were imprisoned in 2009 for attempting to exercise their right to freedom of expression,” the report said.

Miliband also raised human rights concerns during his China visit, including the issue of missing lawyer Gao Zhisheng, who disappeared more than a year ago. China has given no clear answer on Gao's whereabouts, despite repeated questions from diplomats and the media.

The United States released its own human rights report on China earlier this month with similar concerns.

Both countries are trying to smooth out relations with China after recent events, including a planned U.S. arms sale to Taiwan and the visit of Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama with U.S. President Barack Obama.

Relations between Britain and China have been tense as well over the failure of December's Copenhagen climate change talks to forge a binding accord on cutting emissions and the execution in China of a British drug smuggler thought to be mentally ill.

“What we oppose are willful pressuring and double standards,” Qin told reporters. “Why doesn't Britain talk about itself or some Western countries that violate human rights in their own countries? It's simply a political show.”

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