By Chen Youwu
Innovation in national governance depends on extensive participation in politics. Human beings live in politics and participation in politics is the only way they can emancipate themselves. Participation in politics not only refers to a series of specific actions involving people’s political participation, but also reflects a series of people's appeals in human rights. Furthermore, political participation is the convergence and integration of a series of human rights having an internal logical structure. These human rights stipulate the content and developmental direction of political participation according to certain rules. In this sense, participation in politics is in essence the manifestation and appeal of human right.
The human right that is a prerequisite for participation in politics - the right to know.
The right to know is the precondition for democratic politics.
The right to know is the basic right of citizens, the precondition of participation in politics and the cornerstone of modern democratic politics. Through political participation, citizens can supervise and restrict the operation of public power. Furthermore, such supervision and restriction should be conducted on the premise of the effective guarantee of the right to know. Without the right to know, citizen’s participation in politics lack purpose and a sense of direction due to inadequate information. “In the process of democracy, participants must obtain adequate and relevant information to participate substantially. Confidentiality reduces the quantity and quality of the available information, which hinders citizens’ participation. In this sense, there is no true democracy and the rule of law without the right to know.”1 Hence, Cohen believes that if a society wants success for democracy, it must be responsible in providing and distributing the information that is needed for universal participation in management. In a country that is either directly or indirectly democratic, if its citizens having power to exercise administration are in a state of being uninformed, it is impossible to run the country well.2 Robert Dahl thinks that the right to know and “freedom of expression” are the requirements for the “minimum procedures” of contemporary democratic politics.3 Roosevelt once pointed out that the only definite guarantee for the continued existence of freedom is a government strong enough to defend the rights of its people, as well as people that are strong and sufficiently informed to maintain supreme rule over the government.4 Lenin also believed that it is ridiculous to talk about democracy without openness.5 In today’s information society, it is imperative to fully safeguard people’s right to know before they participate in the management of national and social affairs. Therefore, some scholars hold that the right to know is “the basis and premise for citizens to exercise the basic rights including suffrage and the right to supervise as well as freedom of speech, of assembly, of procession, of demonstration, of association, of the press, and other forms of freedom of expression.”6[page]
The right to know is the premise of self-actualization for citizens
In any country or any industry of this country, the first thing needed for citizens to be able to achieve self-actualization and self-improvement is to obtain relevant information and knowledge. This is particularly obvious in the Internet-based information society. Citizens cannot make objective, comprehensive, scientific and reasonable judgments and have corresponding understanding without adequate information and knowledge. The lack of adequate information and knowledge may result in mistakes in decisions and behavior. Therefore, in order to make correct judgments and decisions, citizens should do their utmost to realize their right to know. On the other hand, the nation should also improve relevant laws and regulations to safeguard the citizens’ right to know.
The human right as a basis for political participation - the right of expression
First, the right of expression is the basis for increasing knowledge about political participation and achieving an understanding about the truth. Through public discussion and collision of knowledge, people can hear opinions of all parties, especially those of the opposite side, so as to get closer to the truth. “Encouraging freedom of speech will not drag people into a contaminative language environment, nor will it mislead people to avoid truth and select fallacy. With the frankness and honesty brought by freedom of speech, the truth will defeat all fallacies.”7 Similar remarks are also made by Holmes, who said to the effect that only through the exchange of thoughts can one obtain the noblest and the finest in a comparatively easy way; or in other words, the best way to testify truth is to put it in the free competitive market and see if it is acknowledged.8 As long as we can safeguard the right of expression, any opinions and ideas will be exposed through people’s expression and communication and the truth will become clearer.
Second, the right of expression is the basis of the operation of political participation. The right of expression is the basic condition for participation in politics. Without such a right, citizens cannot freely express their opinions during their participation in politics. Nor will it be possible to speak of electing candidates in a democratic way, of understanding candidates, of casting votes in a democratic way, and of exercising democratic supervision. The right of expression is the essential condition and basic principle for citizens to express their agreement and inform themselves. It is also the necessary guarantee for restricting public power and preventing democracy from going from majority rule to the tyranny of the majority.[page]
Third, the right of expression is the basis of self-actualization of the main players participating in politics. Dworkin believes that the right of expression can help shape the citizen’s humanity of those expressing themselves and promote their self-actualization. Through exercising the right of expression, citizens become the main players who have moral integrity and a sense of responsibility, and convey their beliefs to others so as to realize their own values. Therefore, to suppress one’s right of expression is not good for bringing the role of his moral integrity into play, nor is it good for improving his moral personality, but will only lead to harmful results: As was said by John Mill, if this freedom is not recognized, or if it is advocated with nobody taking prohibition into consideration, then destructive outcomes will be produced in terms of people’s intelligence and further virtues.9
Fourth, the right of expression is the key to social and political stability. “The harm of preventing people from criticizing is more severe than the danger of the flood caused by blocked rivers. The blocked river will make the river burst its bank, leading to damage to many people. The same is true of people. That’s why the people controlling water should dredge the waterway so that water can run smoothly, and rulers should allow their subjects to vent their views freely.”10 The proper exercise of the right of expression provides a good foundation for social, political, economic and even cultural development and reform. Through exercising the right of expression, nations and all aspects of society can extensively solicit public opinion, and screen and accept them. In this way various opinions can be reflected, lest the failure to reflect opinions leads to hidden trouble.
Fifth, the right of expression is the foundation of political and cultural prosperity. By advocating giving free rein to various schools of thoughts, exercising the right of expression greatly promotes cultural prosperity, especially that of political culture. Historical experience teaches us that failure to safeguard the right of expression leads to a political culture that violates human rights. We’ve had profound historical lessons in this regard.
The human right as a bottom line for political participation - suffrage
Election is the most fundamental and important behavior in political participation in modern democratic and law-based countries. Suffrage is the citizen’s most important political right.
First, election is the most basic way to realize democracy. The essence of democracy is that people can be their own masters and decide their own affairs. In political countries, this is mainly reflected by the fact that citizens participate in every aspect of social and political life, with election as the most basic form of participation. Especially in modern national countries, people need to achieve the essence of democracy of “people being the masters of their country” by depending on elections, regardless of region or population. So, the essence of modern elections is a process in which human rights are stored up and is the key starting point for constructing a representative government system.11 In this sense, Huntington believed that elections are the essence of democracy.12[page]
Second, elections reflect the people’s free will. Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.” This is seen as “the revolution of revolutions,” in which the minimum requirement for a national democracy is established within the revolutionary framework: the government powers should be built on “the will of people,” and there must be a system of democratic participation whereby every citizen enjoys political rights on an equal footing.13 Election is not only the basis of the legality of government power, but also represents the citizens’ minimum participation in politics. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights says about suffrage in Article 25: “Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity, without any of the distinctions mentioned in article 2 and without unreasonable restrictions: (A) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives; (B) To vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors.” It is also stated in the 34th article of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China: “All citizens of the People’s Republic of China who have reached the age of 18 have the right to vote and stand for election, regardless of nationality, race, sex, occupation, family background, religious belief, education, property status, or length of residence, except persons deprived of political rights according to law.” In addition, there is a provision regarding suffrage in the constitution of nearly every nation.
Based on the importance of suffrage to democratic society, suffrage should be considered to be the primary human right among political rights. Nowak said to the effect that suffrage is no doubt the most important political right; any democratic system will have to depend on representatives’ election in parliament, council or similar institutions, as long as it does not make political decisions through the convening of citizens’ congresses (currently some Swiss cities sometimes still adopt this method).14 Some Chinese scholars also hold that suffrage is “the primary and core right” among all political rights.15[page]
The human right as an axis in political participation – the right of participation
Citizens’ participation in national management and governance should not be considered as a way for the ruling party and the government to “rely on the masses” and “follow the mass line,” or a strategy to mobilize the intelligence and financial resources of the people, and it should by no means be regarded as an endowment of the party and the government. Instead, it should be clarified as a citizens’ constitutional right that cannot be ignored.16 This constitutional right is the right of participation, meaning citizens’ or social organizations’ right to directly participate in the decision-making process of administration, legislation, law enforcement and jurisdiction activities. Pursuant to Paragraph 3 of Article 2 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China: The people administer state affairs and manage economic, cultural and social affairs through various channels and in various ways in accordance with the law. This provision is the basis of regarding the right of participation as an important constitutional right in contemporary China. As the basis of citizens’ extensive participation in national and social affairs, the right of participation varies from country to country. For example, the 14th article of the Finnish constitution specifically provides the “right of participation.” The provisions concerning “participation” in the constitutions of most countries reflect the “right of participation.” For instance, the 49th article of the Portuguese constitution provides that all citizens have the right to participate in political activities and manage national public affairs directly or via freely elected representatives. Judging from its content, the right of participation includes citizens’ right to vote, the right to participate in legislative and administrative activities, the right of social participation in jurisdiction activity, and that of participation in social affairs and management.17
The core and axis of political participation is the right of participation, which is the force driving political participation.
First, the right of participation is the basis of political participation. Bernard Marner pointed out that the rightfulness of democracy is reflected in the formation of collective will but not in the collective will itself.18 From his point of view, in a society where there are pluralistic cultures and values, the only way for people to prove the correctness of their opinions is to reason with each other on an equal footing. It is a practical choice to conduct a free and continuing discussion on an equal footing to replace “universally accepted consensus” with “universally ongoing discussion.” Hence, the fact that citizens can freely and equally participate in discussion reflects the justice of democracy, and the basis of such rights is no doubt the right to participate because only when people have such a right are they qualified to engage in discussion.
Second, the right of participation is an expression of rights concerning political participation. In the human rights system, the best way to manifest the essence of political participation is the right of participation. Citizens take part in national and social life through the exercise of the right of participation, which is also the process of gradual realization of political participation. The exercise of the right of participation is in proportion to the realization of political participation. Furthermore, the range and depth of the right of participation determines the range and depth of political participation. From this perspective, the right of participation is but the human rights discourse of political participation.[page]
The human right for organizing political participation - the right of association
Freedom of association is one of the political participation activities indispensable for citizens in a democratic and law-based society, next only to election in terms of importance. Countries that value democracy inevitably value the freedom of association. Therefore, as a human right, freedom of association is specified in the constitutions and laws of many countries.
To confront powerful natural forces, people must live in groups, which justifies the fact that association is people’s natural need; to confront state power, people must have organizations, which indicates that association is also a social need. With the development of society, various organizations, from state organs to voluntary associations, are all formed with the aim of carrying out social struggle and economic and cultural activities by depending on collective collaboration. So the freedom of association is citizens’ right to participate or to challenge state power. It is an important guarantee for citizens to take part in the management of national affairs and social affairs.19
Some scholars even equate the right of association with the exercise of democracy, thinking that the right of association is the key to democracy. For example, Mastellone points out that to explore the European history of democracy after 1848, one must have a comprehensive understanding of the development of different associations and explain such development from political perspectives. He also says that if association is a kind of social combination voluntarily realized for a certain goal, then we have to admit that in essence, democracy is a kind of association; the profound link between association and democracy enables us to affirm that there will be no democracy in places where peaceful association with the aim of achieving social goals is not allowed. In addition, he says that association is a great leap towards democracy.20 Civil society theories and pluralism both believe that “nonprofit organization is not only beneficial to democracy, but also of vital importance to it.”21 Through his observation of American democracy, Tocqueville believed that political restrictions of tyranny rely on the growth of civil associations that are outside the direct control of state organs. If civil society is the indispensable condition for democracy, then civil association would be its hard core.22[page]
The human right as a safeguard for political participation - the right of supervision
First, the right of supervision is the basis for the sound development of political participation. Subject to the influences of historical tradition, economic development, political structure and other factors of administrative rulers, political participation is sometimes affected or even hindered. As a result, phenomena such as the abuse of power and seeking private gain through power are prevalent, and there appear violations of human rights. Therefore, granting citizens the right to supervise state organs and their staff members is not only a necessary requirement for the development of democratic politics and the construction of political civilization, but also an objective requirement for the development of the socialist human right cause.
Second, the right of supervision is the basis of rights for realizing political participation. Realizing political participation involves realizing the rights in various aspects of the economy, society, politics, law and culture. Of these rights, the right of supervision is a basic human right which helps to realize other rights. This is also where the right of supervision differs from other political rights. In other words, the right of supervision serves the realization of various rights involved in realizing political participation.
Third, the right of supervision is the basis of improving the personality of the main players of political participation. Viewed from the angle of political participation, the improvement of the personality of the main players of political participation needs to be based on various political rights and be gradually improved during the practical exercise of these political rights. Through the exercise of the right of supervision, the main players of political participation enhance their sense of mission and responsibility and thereby cultivate their capability to make acute judgment, have keen insight, and take courageous and resolute action. This will greatly stimulate the growth of the personality of the main players of political participation.
Apart from the “six rights” mentioned above, political participation also includes freedom of assembly, freedom of demonstration, the right to revolt, the right of petition, the right to strike, freedom of creation, academic freedom, the right to use broadcasting time,23 the right to reply, the right to political response, the right to struggle to maintain safety24 and the right of political defense.25
(The author is deputy director of the Research and Education Center for Human Rights, Guangzhou University) [page]
1. YAO Jianzong: Research on Newly-emerged Rights, China Renmin University Press, 2011, p. 111.
2. (US) Cohen: On Democracy, Commercial Press, 1988, p.159.
3. (US) Robert Dahl: On Democracy, Commercial Press, 1999, p. 93.
4. (US) Roosevelt: Selected Works of Roosevelt, Commercial Press, p. 181.
5. Collected Works of Lenin (Volume 1), Renmin Press, 1972, p. 181.
6. LI Buyun: Human Rights Law, Higher Education Press, 2005, p. 152.
7. WANG Feng: Freedom of Expression and Its Limitations, Social Sciences Academic Press, 2006, pp.66-67.
8. Abrams v. United States, 250u.s.616, 630(1919)(Holmes, J., dissenting).
9. John Mill: On Liberty, Commercial Press, 1986, p. 59.
10. Discourses of the States: Discourses of the Zhou State (Part I).
11. BAI Gang, ZHAO Shouxing: Election and Governance, China Social Sciences Press, 2011, p. 194.
12. (US) Huntington: The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century, Shanghai Joint Publishing, 1998, p. 6.
13. (Sweden) Gudmundur Alfredsson, (Norway) Asbjorn Eide: Universal Declaration of Human Rights: A Common Standard of Achievement, Sichuan Renmin Press, 1999, pp. 438-439.
14. (Austria) Manfred Nowak: U.N.Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: CCPR Commentary, SDX Joint Publishing, 2008, p. 597.
15. JIAO Hongchang: Legal Protection of the Right to Vote, Peking University Press, 2005, p. 15.
16. GUO Daohui: Social Power and Civil Society, Yilin Press, 2009, p. 327.
17. GUO Daohui: Social Power and Civil Society, Yilin Press, 2009, pp. 336-363.
18. CAI Dingjian: Public Participation: European System and Experience, Law Press, 2009, p. 5.
19. LI Buyun: Human Right Law, Higher Education Press, 2005, pp. 161-162.
20. (Italy) Mastellone: Storia Della Democrazia in Europa de Montesquieu a Kelsen, translated by Huang Huaguang, Social Sciences Academic Press, 2001, pp. 123-140.
21. MAO Shoulong: Political Sociology, China Social Sciences Press, 2001, p. 246.
22. DENG Zhenglai, (US) Alexander: State and Civil Society, Central Compilation & Translation Press, 1999, pp. 117-120.
23. For instance, Article 40 of the Portuguese Constitution: 1. All political parties, labor unions, professional societies, commercial organizations and other national organizations have the right to use broadcasting time on public radio and TV stations, according to their size, representativeness and the objective standards provided by laws and regulations. 2. Political parties that occupy one or more seats at the Republic parliament but has not formed a government, have the right to use broadcasting time on public radio and TV stations. The broadcasting time should be allocated in proportional to the seats taken by every party; parties are also entitled to reply to or respond to remarks made by the government and the broadcasting time and the China Social Sciences Press prominence of such broadcasting should be identical with the broadcasting time and the prominence of the government remarks. Any political party having seat(s) in the legislative parliament of the autonomous region should enjoy the same rights as those mentioned above. 3. During election, according to law, candidates have regular and equal length of the broadcasting time on national or local broadcast and TV stations.
24. For instance, Article 85 of the Constitution of the DPRK provides that citizens should raise their vigilance and fight for national security.
25. For instance, Article 28 of the Constitution of East Timor provides “right to revolt and right to self-defence”: every citizen is entitled to the right to self-defense.
