China hits back at Hillary tweet

The Chinese government is hitting back at Hillary Clinton over a critical tweet Monday night calling attention to a group of jailed activists.

“The detention of women’s rights activists in China must end. This is inexcusable,” Clinton tweeted on Monday, along with a link to a New York Times article about the Chinese activists.

The detention of women’s activists in #China must end. This is inexcusable. #FreeBeijing20Five Read this story: http://t.co/qV3VNOgmyG

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) April 7, 2015

The story details the jailing of activists who protested domestic violence and the lack of educational opportunities for women. At least two of the women are facing serious health problems in jail, and their lawyer says they are regularly interrogated.

{mosads}Their arrests reportedly prompted a crackdown on women’s rights protesters. The story says that many “young feminists have gone into hiding.”

Clinton’s criticism echoed around the world and prompted a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry to push back.

“China is a country ruled by law. Relevant departments will handle the relevant case according to law,” Hua Chunying said in a press briefing, according to Reuters. 

“We hope that public figures in other countries can respect China’s judicial sovereignty and independence.”

Clinton, who is expected to announce a presidential bid within the next few weeks, has been a figure in the fight for international women’s rights since she entered the public eye, as well as a critic of China’s human rights record.

In one of her most famous speeches as first lady in 1995 during a United Nations conference in Beijing, she declared that “human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights.”