The Significance of History and Culture on Global Human Rights Governance

Stephen Brawer

 

The dramatic and profound changes that are emerging worldwide can be most definitely, connected to the Rise of a “New China.” This is expressed clearly in the Xi Jinping’s Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. The importance of studying and understanding these ideas, not only for the people of the People’s Republic of China, but perhaps, even more importantly, for the rest of the world, will be ignored at a great price for humanity. Unfortunately, the present ongoing effort to demonize China, coming from the USA, the UK, and the G-7, is based on a combination of fear and virtual total ignorance of both Modern China and the great history of an over five-thousand-year-old civilization. I fully respect the sovereign choice of political system of the People’s Republic of China, yet I see the BRI emerging out of this very long and very profound history of China. Western political leaders, presently lack any insight into this very long and great history. They are also trapped in the philosophical basement of a western philosophical Hobbesian world view, that sees men and women as fundamentally evil and egotistical. Therefore, they operate on the idea of the “law of the jungle.” They consider brute power to be the solution to problems and they cannot trust anyone. This certainly lacks any substance for protecting or defending Human Rights. Naturally, differences do exist, but they do not divide us, rather in the best sense, they teach us to learn from each other.