China firmly opposes the US' slandering of China's religious policies and interference in China's domestic affairs, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said on Friday.

Geng's remarks were in response to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's calling China's policies in its Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region "the stain of the century." Mike Pence also criticized China's policies on human rights and religion at the State Department's Ministry to Advanced Religious Freedom event.

What Pence and Pompeo said is hypocritical. They collude with heretics, which once again exposes a sordid and hypocritical face. For these people, religious freedom is an excuse and a tool for them to slander other countries, to destroy their religious peace and to interfere with their domestic affairs, Geng said.

"People of all ethnic groups in China have religious freedom and the Chinese government protects legal religious activities in accordance with laws and forbids anyone using the name of religion to commit crimes," he said.

Xinjiang has launched vocational education and training centers in accordance with laws. It is an effective measure to protect the majority of the people's rights of survival, development and other basic human rights.

China hopes the US will not make groundless remarks, which are contrary to the truth and common sense. We urge the US to abide by the truth, abandon bias, take an objective attitude on China's religious situation and policies, and stop using religious affairs to interfere with other countries' domestic affairs, Geng said. 

Global Times