Suddenly human rights matter in China?

On December 1, at the behest of U.S. officials, Canadian authorities detained Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of a giant Chinese tech company.

The charge is that Meng violated American sanctions against Iran.

Chinese officials pitched a fit. They accused Canada and the U.S. of violating “rights and interests of Chinese citizens.”

China’s response isn’t surprising, but its hypocrisy is breathtaking. As the Associated Press noted, “While protesting what it calls Canada’s violation of Meng’s human rights, China’s ruling Communist Party stands accused of mass incarcerations of its Muslim minority … [and] locking up people exercising their right to free speech.”

Just a few days ago, “About 100 worshippers at an unofficial church in southwestern China were snatched from their homes or from the streets,” as  part of a larger coordinated campaign against Chinese “house churches.”

Meng’s rights should be respected, but her government’s appeals to those rights should not be. That’s pure hypocrisy.