China issues report on US human rights(2)

The US has not ratified, or participated in, a series of core UN conventions on human rights, such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT

Solitary confinement is prevalent in the US, the report says.

In US prisons, inmates in solitary confinement are enclosed in cramped cells with poor ventilation and little or no natural light, isolated from other prisoners; a situation that takes it toll on inmates' physical and mental health.

About 80,000 US prisoners are in solitary confinement. Some have been held in solitary confinement for over 40 years.

RAMPANT GUN VIOLENCE

The rampant US gun culture breeds violence that results in the death of 11,000 Americans every year.

The report cites figures from the FBI that state firearms were used in 69.3 percent of the nation's murders, 41 percent of robberies, and 21.8 percent of aggravated assaults.

In 2013, 137 people were killed in 30 mass murder events (four or more deaths each).

A rampage in the headquarters of the Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington D.C. left 12 people dead, according to the report.

UNEMPLOYMENT AND HOMELESSNESS

"The US still faces a grave employment situation with its unemployment rate still high," the report says.

Unemployment for low-income families has topped 21 percent. The homeless population in the US has climbed 16 percent from 2011 to 2013.

There are also many child laborers in the agricultural sector in the US and their physical and mental health is seriously compromised, the report says.

Friday's report was the 15th such annual report published by China in response to US attacks.