Amnesty International: Don't let pandas distract from China's human rights violations

While panda enthusiasts across the Netherlands celebrated the arrival of pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya on Wednesday, Amnesty International posted a video on social media reminding people not to let the pandas make them forget about all the human rights violations in China.

Wu Wen and Xing Ya arrived at Schiphol airport on Wednesday evening. They are on loan from China and will be staying at the Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen for the next 15 years. 

"China executes thousands of people every year. Journalists are harassed. Lawyers are tortured. Anyway, we will not talk about that today. Because today is a day of celebrations! The pandas are here. Fantastic", Amnesty spokesperson Emile Affolter said in the video. "The Netherlands did everything it could, did its best for years to get the pandas here. Today it finally happened."

"So yes, then today we will not stand here, and we will not talk about human rights violations in China. Today is truly a day to look away." 

More information on human rights violations in China can be found on Amnesty International Nederland's website.