China is accusing Canada of hypocrisy for criticizing Beijing鈥檚 human-rights record, pointing to issues faced by Indigenous Peoples.

The blowback comes after Ottawa sanctioned eight Chinese officials it accuses of 鈥済rave human rights violations鈥� against ethnic and religious minorities, and voiced concern about democracy in Hong Kong.

Ottawa issued a statement last month that cited reports of arbitrary and violent detainment of Uyghur people, as well as repression toward Tibetans and Falun Gong practitioners.

Global Affairs Canada also says it 鈥渄eplores鈥� that authorities are issuing international bounties for Hong Kong democracy activists and former lawmakers from the territory, including Canadians.

Beijing says those claims are baseless and it has sanctioned groups and activists in Canada who advocate for minorities in China, barring citizens from certain interactions with these activists.

Since then, China鈥檚 state media has repeatedly called out Canada over its treatment of Indigenous Peoples, claiming Ottawa is being hypocritical.

鈥淐anada is in no position to lecture others on human rights,鈥� Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a Dec. 11 press conference, according to an official translation.

鈥淓ven today, Canada鈥檚 Indigenous people still face systemic racial discrimination and unfair treatment. Instead of dealing with it, Canada chooses to smear and vilify other countries.鈥�

Mao added that 鈥淐hina has achieved enormous progress in human rights鈥� that 鈥渘o one without bias can deny.鈥�

A day later, she added that 鈥渢he whole thing is an ugly, hypocritical political stunt done by some Canadian political figures under the pretext of human rights, to serve an unspeakable agenda and please the U.S.鈥�

China鈥檚 embassy in Ottawa has been amplifying those messages on social media, including a political cartoon from a state-run media outlet CGTN showing a beaver with a tattered home telling a panda with an immaculate house that it has some cracks.

鈥淐anada turns a blind eye to the systematic racism and unfair treatment that the Indigenous people face, yet fabricates accusations and smears China鈥檚 human-rights progress,鈥� reads the cartoon caption. 鈥淚ts constant political manipulation on human-rights issues is nothing more than a hypocritical farce of double standards.鈥�

In a recurring assessment of human-rights issues in Canada, the United Nations noted progress had been made in Indigenous rights and housing, while urging more be done.

The November 2023 assessment asked Canadian governments to stop human-rights abuses by Canadian mining corporations abroad and the overrepresentation of minorities in prison and child welfare. It also asked Canada to better respect Indigenous Peoples鈥� rights to free, prior and informed consent.

The same body鈥檚 assessment of China in January 2024 noted the country had improved its policies for women and children, but urged the government act to 鈥渆nsure that all detainees are formally accounted for, granted access to their families and held in officially recognized places of detention.鈥�

It urged China 鈥渞espect the rights to freedom of religion or belief, opinion and expression, peaceful assembly and culture, including for Tibetans, Uyghurs, and other minorities鈥� and said counterterrorism laws are not 鈥渋n compliance with international human-rights law and standards,鈥� including in Hong Kong.