Constructing China’s Human Rights Science: Cause, Cognition, and Paradigm
LU Guangjin*
Abstract: “China’s Human Rights Science” is undoubtedly a brand-new concept. Just as China has its own philosophy, literature, history, law, political science, and sociology, it should also have its own human rights science. China’s Human Rights Science refers to the cognitive science of human rights in China. Developing its disciplinary system, academic system, and discourse system, and constructing an independent Chinese human rights knowledge system, are essential requirements for promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese modernization and creating a new form of human civilization. China’s Human Rights Science originated in China, grew in China, and deepened through China’s human rights practices. China’s Human Rights Science adhere to the universality of human rights principles and possess distinctive characteristics. It works as the knowledge-based organization, academic refinement, and theoretical expression of the path of human rights development that conforms to the trend of the times and suits China’s national conditions, as pursued by the Communist Party of China in leading the people. China’s Human Rights Science can enrich and develop the theory of human rights civilization, and should become a global public product of human rights.
Keywords: China’s Human Rights Science · independent human rights knowledge system · Chinese modernization · a new form of human rights civilization
I. Introduction
Building an independent knowledge system is an important task for developing philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics in the new era. On April 25, 2022, Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commitee said during his visit to Renmin University of China that “accelerating the construction of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics is in the final analysis the construction of an independent knowledge system for China. We must take China and the times as the frame of reference, base ourselves on China’s reality, and address Chinese problems, to continuously promote the creative transformation and innovative development of China’s excellent traditional culture, and continuously promote knowledge innovation, theoretical innovation and method innovation, so that Chinese philosophy and social sciences can truly stand rock-firm in the world’s academia.”1 Creating China’s independent human rights knowledge system is an indispensable and important part of building its independent knowledge system. On February 25, 2022, General Secretary Xi Jinping also pointed out in his speech when presiding over the 37th group study session of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee: “We should rely on the vivid practice of China’s human rights cause in development, and summarize original concepts, to develop the discipline system, academic system, and discourse system for human rights in China.”2
In promoting the human rights cause over the years, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has led the Chinese people onto a human rights development path that conforms to the trend of the times and suits the national conditions of China, forming a human rights theory and practice paradigm in line with the principle of universality of human rights and more distinctly rich in Chinese characteristics, while enriching and developing the diversity of human rights civilization. However, due to deviations in understanding and various historical reasons, especially the concept of treating “human rights” as an imported product of Western ideology and culture, we have not seriously sorted, summarized and refined the successful practical experience of China’s human rights as a knowledge system and value theory, and we are still wanting in the capacity for constructing China’s own human rights theory. A basic fact is that there is still a big gap between China’s independent construction of the human rights knowledge system and its historical achievements in developing the human rights cause. China has not yet systematically and completely established its own narrative system and discourse system for human rights.
How to summarize the successful practical experience of China’s human rights in a timely, accurate and comprehensive manner, turn it into scholarship, knowledge and professionalism, build its discipline system, academic system and discourse system, and construct China’s independent human rights science is an important task before us. Enhancing this undertaking is of particular significance to strengthening the persuasiveness, appeal and influence of China’s human rights, enhancing its right to speak, and establishing a favorable image for China.
II. Rationale and Significance: The Inevitable Requirement for Creating a New form of Human Civilization
In his congratulatory letter to the 2021 South-South Human Rights Forum, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “human rights are a symbol of human civilization progress, and safeguarding human life, value and dignity and realizing human rights for all is the common pursuit of the human society.”3 Respecting and protecting human rights is not only the intellectual result of mankind’s understanding of the meaning and value of its own existence, but also a vivid social practice of mankind’s unremitting pursuit of a better future in the course of development. Since human rights ascended the historical stage as values, an institutional culture and a social practice related to the development and progress of human society, they have developed with the advance of history and have been constantly given new meanings. Nowadays, human rights have been globalized and become mainstream, and respect for and protection of human rights has become a common human value with universal significance.
In its centennial history of struggle, the CPC has made unremitting efforts to unite and lead the people to strive for, respect, protect and develop human rights. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has made many important expositions on respecting and protecting human rights, which has become an important task of the CPC in state governance in the new era. China has made historic achievements in developing human rights cause. In the times when China has built a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and started the new journey of building a modern socialist country in an all-round way, and against the historical background of various intertwining challenges and crises in the world due to major changes not seen in a century,summarizing and sorting out the rich practical experience of China in developing human rights and building its independent human rights knowledge system is an inevitable requirement for promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and creating a new form of human civilization with Chinese modernization.
Summarizing and expounding the theory of Chinese modernization is a major theoretical innovation of the 20th CPC National Congress and the latest major achievement of scientific socialism. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress clearly summarized that Chinese modernization is a modernization involving a huge population, a modernization of common prosperity for all the people, a modernization with coordinated material civilization and spiritual civilization, a modernization of harmonious co-existence of man and nature, and a modernization along the road of peaceful development. This summarization not only profoundly reveals the scientific connotations of Chinese modernization, but also comprehensively encapsulates its humanistic spirit and human rights values. Chinese modernization is a modernization that promotes the all-round development of all human rights and the people. In his important speech at the opening ceremony of the group study session on studying and implementing the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “to move toward modernization, a country must not only follow the general law of modernization, but also conform to its reality and have its own characteristics. Chinese modernization not only has the common characteristics of the modernization in all countries, but also has distinctive characteristics based on the national conditions of China.” He also emphasized that “Chinese modernization is deeply rooted in the excellent traditional Chinese culture. Embodying the advanced essence of scientific socialism, it draws on and absorbs all the achievements of human civilization, represents the development direction of human civilization progress, presents a new picture different from the Western modernization model, and constitutes a brand-new form of human civilization.”4 Interpreting China’s development and progress with Chinese modernization not only explains the intrinsic significance of China’s development benefiting its own people, but also reveals the external significance of China’s development aiding the world, thus better aligning China’s development with the laws and characteristics of human social development and progress.
Human beings are the center of modernization, whose purpose is to promote better human development and constantly create conditions for realizing all-round human development. Respecting and protecting human rights is the basic spirit of modern civilization and the proper meaning of modernization. Human rights civilization is an important part of human civilization, and the new form of human civilization created by Chinese modernization naturally includes human rights civilization. The great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is the overall rejuvenation of a nation and a great civilization. Summarizing the practical experience of China’s human rights, turning the ideas and theories of China’s human rights into knowledge, scholarship and professionalism, and constructing a human rights knowledge system with Chinese characteristics are indispensable and important parts of interpreting the new form of human civilization created by Chinese modernization.
Specifically, the issue can be recognized and understood from the following three aspects:
A. Construction of China’s human rights science is an inevitable requirement for developing Marxist human rights theory
Marxism is a theory of the people, and for the first time in human history, it created an ideological system for the people to realize their own emancipation. “For the first time, Marxism explored the road of human emancipation from the standpoint of the people, and pointed out the direction for the ultimate establishment of an ideal society without oppression or exploitation, and featuring equality and freedom for all.”5 Marxism firmly believes that the future society “will be such a union, where the free development of individuals is the condition for the free development of all people.”6 The founders of Marxism believed that the realization of the free and well-rounded development of human beings is the highest realm of human social development and the supreme goal of human rights. In their view, socialism and communism are the social systems that emphasize human rights the most, and “they are true and thorough theories on human rights and democracy.”7 In the course of its centennial struggle, the CPC has persisted in integrating the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and excellent traditional culture, striving to solve the practical problems facing the development of China’s human rights with the basic Marxist stance, viewpoint, and method on human rights, and promoting the Sinicization, modernization and popularization of Marxist theory on human rights.
Marxism is an ideological theory that keeps pace with the times, and this feature is precisely where its vitality comes from. The Sinicization of Marxism is far from over, and Marxism has been continuously modernized and popularized in the process. General Secretary Xi Jinping said when talking about the development of Marxism that “an important task for philosophy and social sciences in China is to promote the Sinicization, modernization and popularization of Marxism, and continue to develop Marxism in the 21st century and the contemporary Chinese Marxism.”8 Today’s era is not the era in which Marxist human rights theory was born; nor is today’s China the same as the Europe when Marxist human rights theory was born. Taking Marxist human rights theory as the guide in developing China’s human rights theory for the 21st century is a requirement of the times and an inevitable requirement for building socialism with Chinese characteristics. Only by developing Marxist human rights theory in the 21st century and developing Marxist human rights theory with Chinese characteristics in the new era can we make Marxist human rights theory more vibrant, appealing and influential. The great practice of building socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era has furnished the development of Marxist human rights theory with rich nourishment. Just as General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Contemporary China is experiencing the most extensive and profound social changes in its own development history, and is also undergoing the most grand and unique practical innovation in human history. This unprecedented great practice will surely provide a strong impetus and broad space for theoretical creation and academic prosperity. This is an era that needs theories and can certainly produce theories, and an era that needs ideas and can certainly produce ideas.”9
B. Construction of China’s human rights science is an inevitable requirement for developing philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics
After years of exploration and efforts, China has achieved positive progress from scratch in human rights research and the construction of human rights disciplines. In terms of academic research on human rights, the National Social Science Foundation and the Philosophy and Social Sciences Project of the Ministry of Education have included human rights research in their scope, and relevant state departments and research institutions such as the China Society for Human Rights Studies are systematically proposing human rights research projects and promoting human rights research. In terms of human rights education and discipline construction, more than 20 institutes of higher education and research institutions across China have set up centers, schools or institutes for human rights research. According to the list of second-tier disciplines independently set up by degree-granting units announced by the Ministry of Education, as of June 2022, six colleges and universities in China have independently established second-tier disciplines related to human rights and offered relevant courses. Some universities, such as Jilin University, have begun to set up first-tier disciplines in human rights on their own. However, from the perspective of enhancing the strength and development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, especially from the stance of building China’s independent human rights knowledge system, we still have much work to do. At present, in China’s general higher education system, the construction of human rights disciplines, the establishment of human rights curricula, and the positioning of human rights teaching materials are basically still in initial development or even pending development. Most of the research and education on China’s human rights theory and practice are carried out within the framework of jurist disciplines, with human rights law as the mainstay; it rarely involves the research and teaching of philosophy, political science, history, sociology and other branches of social sciences. In China, human rights-related second-tier disciplines are all placed under the first-tier discipline of law, but not under other first-tier disciplines. Only a few institutes of higher education have opened human rights law courses for law undergraduates, while general human rights courses are basically not offered for non-law undergraduates. We have yet to attach enough importance to the construction of China’s human rights science at the strategic level it deserves. We don’t have academic research and disciplines such as “human rights science” or academic research and disciplines such as “China’s human rights science.” In other words, neither “human rights” nor “China’s human rights” have become an independent “science.”
In contrast, in the international community, especially in the United States and some other Western countries, academic research in human rights and the construction of human rights disciplines began early, and developed rapidly, forming independent academic research norms and discipline construction models. In terms of research directions and thematic courses, there are basic theoretical research, such as introduction to human rights, philosophy of human rights, human rights culture, history and theory of human rights, theory and practice of human rights, and introduction to the history of human rights thought; there are research on laws related to human rights, including international human rights law, civil rights law, human rights and humanitarianism, European human rights law, comparative human rights and comparative equality law; human rights research topics, such as human rights norms and mechanisms, social policy and human rights, business and human rights, human rights in Africa, human rights in the United States, and human rights in Europe; research on the human rights of special groups such as women, children, persons with disabilities, the elderly and ethnic minorities; cutting-edge research on human rights such as human rights and peace, social justice and human rights, global health and human rights, human rights in the Anthropocene, climate justice and environmental rights. It can be seen that although the United States and some other Western countries have not yet used the concept of “human rights science” in human rights research and education, they have built their own human rights academic system and discipline system dominated by Western human rights concepts.
In the face of the great social changes in contemporary China, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “China’s philosophy and social sciences should take what we are doing as the center, excavate new materials from the practice of China’s reform and development, discover new problems, put forward new views, and construct new theories.”10 The historic achievements made in China’s human rights undertaking, and China’s development of human rights path in line with the trend of the times and its own reality have laid a solid practical foundation for building China’s human rights science. Summarizing the practical experience of China’s human rights and transforming it into knowledge and theory can further enrich the ideological value connotations of Chinese philosophy and social sciences, enhance their moral and spiritual strength, and strengthen their persuasiveness, appeal and radiation.
C. Construction of China’s human rights science is an inevitable requirement for enhancing the soft power of China’s national culture
Human rights have characteristic values and ideological property, and apparent cultural attributes. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “culture is the soul of a country and a nation. Cultural prosperity rejuvenates a country, and cultural strength enhances the power of a nation. Without a high degree of cultural self-confidence and cultural prosperity, there will be no great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”11 He also particularly emphasized that “cultural self-confidence is a basic, broader, and deeper self-confidence, and a basic, deeper and more lasting force.”12 In the contemporary era, human rights culture is an important part of a country’s cultural construction, and its status and role in cultural competition among countries are becoming increasingly prominent. It is the ideological basis of a country’s human rights discourse. Cultivating China’s human rights culture in the new era is an important part of enhancing the soft power of its national culture, and the key to cultivating such a culture in the new era is to cultivate human rights discourse, tell China’s story of human rights, and build China’s independent knowledge system on human rights.
As the value pursuit of human society and the international moral high ground, the concept of human rights has been continuously awarded different functions in different countries and nations, and by different classes and political groups since its inception. In the contemporary world, human rights have been globalized, universalized and mainstreamed, becoming an important option in international affairs and a key arena of international political contest. Over the years, due to ideological prejudice and the need for value diplomacy, the development and progress of China’s human rights have not been recognized by Western countries that dominate world politics. Instead, they have been rejected by their “universal human rights view.” In recent years, some Western countries have drawn on their dominance and interpretation of human rights in the international community to politicize, weaponize and instrumentalize human rights, and continuously increased their efforts to use human rights to interfere in China’s internal affairs and delay China’s development, in an attempt to put China in the condemned position in global morality on various trumped-up “human rights crimes.” Some countries in the West have reversed right and wrong, and ignored the facts. Turning a blind eye to the historic achievements made by China’s human rights, they have slandered China’s series of positive and effective practices in respecting and protecting human rights as trampling on human rights. In this context, China needs more than ever a human rights discourse with full explanatory ability, a human rights academic discipline with ideological and cultural foundation, and a human rights discipline with a systematic structure. As mentioned above, even in the United States and some other Western countries, the concept of “human rights science” has not yet been used. If we can build our own human rights science in a timely manner and construct an independent human rights knowledge system, we will surely enhance the persuasiveness, appeal and radiation of our human rights, and lay a solid foundation for seizing the international moral high ground and enhancing the soft power of our national culture.
III. Cognition and Scope: Constructing China’s Independent Human Rights Theory System
“China’s human rights science” is undoubtedly a completely new concept. The author believes that just as China has its own philosophy, literature, law, history, political science, and sociology, it should also have its own human rights science. The so-called China’s human rights science is its cognitive science on human rights. Specifically, it is a human rights knowledge system with Chinese characteristics and a science on the development of China’s human rights generated on the basis of summarizing the country’s rich experience in human rights practice.
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out when talking about China’s human rights development path: “In the practice of promoting the development of China’s human rights cause, we have combined the Marxist concept of human rights with China’s specific conditions and excellent traditional culture, summed up our Party’s successful experience in uniting and leading the people to respect and protect human rights, learned from the achievements of excellent human civilization, and embarked on a human rights development path in line with the trend of the times and the national conditions of our country.”13 Recognizing and thinking about China’s human rights from the perspective of “science” is launching refinement, academic expression, and discipline construction of its development path, which will make it a more intellectual, professional and popular human rights theory easier for people to understand and accept, and consequently a common knowledge wealth of human rights civilization.
A. Research object and knowledge system of China’s human rights science
As can be seen from the above knowledge and understanding, China’s human rights science should take China’s human rights practice as the main research object, and cover the basic points of the elements involved in the development of China’s human rights. It should include at least the following seven aspects of China’s human rights: First, its background, historical development and evolutionary logic; second, its ideological source, theoretical system and discourse characteristics; third, its conceptual proposition, conceptual framework and value orientation; fourth, its institutional guarantees, policy construction and action plans; fifth, its practice paradigm, development law and development characteristics; sixth, its ideological wisdom, spiritual values and civilized characteristics; seventh, its world significance, orientation of the times and future direction.
In a large sense, the construction of China’s human rights science is to build its independent human rights knowledge system, with the discourse system, academic system and discipline system as the basic content. Among them, the discourse system is the foundation, which determines the academic system and discipline system. The academic system is the support, creating conditions for the rationalization, specialization and knowledge of the discourse system, and furnishing a theoretical basis for the construction of the discipline system. The subject system is the embodiment of the discourse system at the level of research and education, and the result of the specialization of the academic system.
Regarding the structure and scope of China’s human rights science in terms of discourse system, academic system and discipline system, the following specific thinking and design can be feasible:
First, let’s take a look at the construction of the human rights discourse system. Human rights discourse is the discourse expression of the concept of human rights, reflecting its conceptual proposition and value orientation. After years of hard work and exploration, China has put forward many human rights discourses with distinctive Chinese characteristics, such as “human rights are historical, concrete and realistic,” “survival is the basis for enjoying all human rights,” “the right to subsistence and the right to development are the primary basic human rights,” “the people’s happy life is the greatest human right,” “protecting and promoting human rights through development,” and “promoting all-round human development,” and has initially formed a discourse expression system for human rights in China. Meanwhile, China has also built its own discourse system of rights. The theory of rights is the core theory of human rights science. China has adhered to the comprehensive concept of human rights, upholds the balance and indivisibility of human rights, and strives to promote the all-round development of all human rights. It has built two sets of human rights discourse systems: one is a discourse system that includes economic, social and cultural rights, civil and political rights, as well as the rights of specific groups; the other is a discourse system of rights that includes the right to subsistence and development, the right to peace and security, as well as the right to health and the environment. However, we must admit that there are still many things that need to be improved and strengthened in the construction of China’s human rights discourse system. First, the refinement, scientific property and universality of China’s human rights discourse need to be further improved, and we have to create more human rights discourse with international penetration and affinity. Second, the internal laws and characteristics of China’s human rights discourse system need to be explored in depth academically, so as to give the human rights discourse more ideological charm and value advantage. Third, the positioning of various rights in China’s human rights discourse system and their relationship with one other need to be further studied, to truly build a more rigorous logic of the rights discourse system.
Second, let’s look at the construction of the academic system of human rights. The academic system reflects the degree of academic rationalization: the more complete the academic system, the higher the degree of academic rationalization; the higher the degree of academic rationalization, the more it can prove the rationality and scientific nature of China’s human rights theory. Over the years, China’s human rights have developed some ideas, concepts, and thoughts in the construction of the academic system in line with China’s own style and characteristics, for example, “following the people-centered concept of human rights,” “upholding equal sharing of human rights,” “respecting the subjective status of the people,” “human rights are not the privilege of some people or a few people,” “human rights development is an on-going process with no end point,” and “there is no best, only better human rights protection,” and so on. However, in reality, a major problem in China’s human rights research is that we are still lacking in systematic, holistic and professional academic interpretation and academic expression of those human rights discourses from the perspective of academic system construction, so as to transform them into a general and universal human rights knowledge system. Moreover, at present, many of China’s human rights discourses are discourses for guiding and specific undertakings, including some discourses for the struggle for public opinion on human rights. How to enrich the academic connotations of such discourses still needs continuous academic exploration.
Last, let’s look at the building of the human rights discipline system, which is an important starting point for promoting education and research on human rights in China. The establishment of a discipline system in this regard is intended to make human rights education and research more professional and serialized. The construction of the discipline of China’s human rights can be launched in the narrow and the broad sense. In a narrow sense, it is the disciplinary construction of a single human rights discipline itself, that is, the disciplinary system of China’s human rights science itself, including its ideal, concept, connotation, thought, scope, structure, development, and features, and the disciplinary logic system. In a broad sense, it is an interdisciplinary construction of human rights. Human rights science can be a separate discipline, but it is more than that. Since human rights civilization is closely related to major civilizations, its spiritual values have been reflected in the development of major civilizations, which makes human rights science have a strong intersectionality. In the broad sense, China’s human rights science is a comprehensive discipline that integrates philosophy and social sciences, as well as natural sciences. Specifically, China’s human rights science involves multiple areas, including philosophy, politics, law, history, sociology, ethnology, economics, environment of human rights, science and technology of human rights, science of human rights health, and development of human rights.
B. Several relationships to be properly handled in the construction of China’s human rights science
First, the relationship between the CPC’s theory of human rights and China’s human rights science. At the 37th group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “The leadership of the CPC and the socialist system determine the socialist nature of China’s human rights cause, and determine that we can ensure that the people are masters of their own country, adhere to the equal sharing of human rights, plan the construction of human rights with systematic thinking, promote the comprehensive development of all kinds of human rights, and continuously realize, develop and safeguard the fundamental interests of the greatest majority of the people.”14 In the long-term practice of revolution, construction, reform and development, especially in the great practice of building socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, the CPC has integrated the Marxist concept of human rights with China’s specific conditions and excellent traditional culture, drawn on the achievements of human civilization, and creatively proposed a theory of human rights with the nature of socialism with Chinese characteristics, making historic achievements in continuously promoting the development of China’s human rights cause. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is embodied in his series of important expositions on respecting and protecting human rights. It is the theoretical basis of China’s human rights and the guiding ideology for its construction. In contemporary China, without the theory of socialist human rights with Chinese characteristics, there would be no independent human rights knowledge system, nor human rights science. China’s human rights science is based on the thinking of “science.” It involves academic argumentation, academic interpretation and discipline construction of the theory of socialist human rights with Chinese characteristics, and strives to make it more knowledgeable, systematic and professional.
Second, the relationship between the Marxist outlook on human rights and China’s human rights science. Marxism is the guiding thought of the CPC, and the Marxist concept of human rights is the ideological foundation of the theory of socialist human rights with Chinese characteristics and the ideological source of China’s human rights science. Guided by Marxist dialectical materialism and historical materialism, China’s human rights science adheres to the basic Marxist stance, viewpoint and method on human rights, upholds the primacy of material and people, emphasizes that productive forces determine production relations and economic base determines the superstructure, advocates that human rights are historical, concrete and realistic, holds that the realization of the full enjoyment of human rights by all is a long-term development process, and believes that the highest state of human rights development is the realization of the free and well-rounded development of human beings. Meanwhile, based on the new reality of building socialism with Chinese characteristics for the new stage in the new century, China’s human rights science has put forward many new concepts, new discourses and new expressions of human rights in line with both the Marxist outlook on human rights and China’s reality, and has creatively developed Marxist human rights theory. China’s human rights science sets greater store by the reality and specificity of human rights, and regards respecting and protecting human rights as an important principle of the national constitution and an important policy of the CPC in governing the country. It pays more attention to the sharing and universality of human rights, adheres to the people-centered approach, effectively protects the basic rights of the broad masses of the people, and takes the satisfaction of the people as the fundamental criterion for testing human rights; it cherishes the process and gradual progress of human rights, adheres to the protection and promotion of human rights in development, promotes human rights through development, and embraces the development-oriented approach of human rights; it pays more attention to the long-term and complex nature of human rights, emphasizing that human rights development is an on-going process with no end point and there is no best, only better human rights protection; it cherishes the openness and inclusiveness of human rights, advocates the common values of all mankind, and actively participates in global human rights governance, to promote the development of human rights cause worldwide, and the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind.
Third, the relationship between the excellent traditional Chinese culture and China’s human rights science. China’s human rights science is the theory on respecting and protecting the human rights of a great nation with a history of 5,000 years of civilization, and a human rights theory that has come from history and continues to innovate and develop in reality. The long history, rich connotations and excellent spirit of Chinese civilization are its inexhaustible ideological source. Chinese civilization has established its position in the history of human civilization long ago. The German philosopher Jaspers’ theory of the “Axis Age” argues that “the axis of world history seems to have been identified around 500 BC in a spiritual process that arose between 800 BC and 200 BC.” It was the most profound turning point in history. Then came the people with whom we still live today. This era can be simply referred to as the ‘Axis Age.’” In particular, Jaspers emphasized: “This axis must be born in the form of ‘human existence’ — in this most remarkable richness, and from then on mankind becomes mankind.”15 The “human existence” and “mankind becomes mankind” here are intended to illustrate the improvement of human beings’ cognition of the meaning and value of their own existence in the “Axis Age.” In Jaspers’ view, many thinkers and philosophical schools such as Confucius and Laozi appeared in China during the Axis Age; together with ancient Greece and ancient India, China formed the three major axis civilizations of ancient times, exerting a profound impact on world history. Jointly, they laid the spiritual foundation of human civilization. Contemporary China is a continuation of historical China, and the excellent traditional Chinese culture is an important source of thought for China’s human rights science, affecting the formation and development of human rights in contemporary China. The excellent traditional Chinese culture has always emphasized respect and care for people, and advocated humanism, people-orientation, harmony, naturalism and other values. Ancient Chinese thinkers not only put forward the idea of cherishing people, for example, “people as the essence of heaven and earth” (Book of Rites), “people is the most precious under heaven” (Xunzi), “of all things nourished by nature only mankind is precious” (Liezi), but also put forward the idea of respecting people, for example, “do not do unto others what you do not want to be done by” (Analects), “there is always someone more valuable” (Mencius), and “love each other” and “benefit each other” (Mozi). These ideas and propositions were rare among other civilizations of that time. With a strong humanist spirit and distinctive characteristics of oriental culture, they have deeply influenced the concept and value orientation of human rights in contemporary China. In a large sense, the Chinese Communists today have inherited and carried forward the excellent traditional Chinese cultural virtues by upholding the original aspiration of seeking happiness for the people, the people-centered development thinking, and the major concept of promoting the construction of a community with a shared future for mankind.
The fourth is the relationship between the outstanding achievements of human rights civilization and China’s human rights science. Mutual learning among civilizations is an important condition for the prosperity and development of human society, and human rights are the product of human civilization progress. China’s human rights science is an open and inclusive theory of human rights. Only by actively drawing on the outstanding achievements of human rights civilization can we build an independent knowledge system for China’s human rights. The common values of all mankind are the concentrated embodiment of the outstanding achievements of human civilization, and China follows and advocates the common values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom, and integrates the common values of all mankind with the core values of society, to construct the value theory of its human rights. The principle of the universality of human rights is an important content of the achievements of excellent human civilization. It has become a basic principle of the United Nations system and international law, and an important symbol of modern civilization. China has embraced this principle and made a point of integrating it with its specific conditions, made respect for and protection of human rights an important principle of the Constitution, and implemented it in establishing and constructing the political, economic, cultural, social and legal systems. A problem that needs to be clarified here is that building China’s human rights science and knowledge system does not mean excluding or rejecting the achievements of human civilization, especially the excellent achievements of human rights civilization. Instead, it means absorbing them to enrich and develop the theory of China’s human rights with the achievements of excellent human rights civilization. The achievements of human civilization, including the achievements of excellent human rights civilization, are the common intellectual wealth of all mankind and an important source of China’s human rights science. Some excellent human rights concepts, thoughts and ideas, such as “human beings are the center of all things,” “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,” “all are equal before the law,” “no one shall be reduced to slavery or servitude,” “the right to development is an inalienable human right,” “all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated,” “everyone has an obligation to society” and so on, have all been actively embodied in China’s human rights theory.
IV. The Paradigm and Characteristics: Starting from China’s National Conditions and Reality
China’s human rights science not only follows the universal principle of human rights, but also insists on proceeding from China’s national conditions and realities, forming a practical paradigm and theoretical characteristics with a distinctly Chinese style, and enriching and developing the civilization theory of human rights.
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “human rights are historical, concrete and realistic, and we should not talk about human rights in isolation from the socio-political conditions and historical and cultural traditions of specific countries.”16 Human rights are not abstract slogans, but concrete existence. They are not only a lasting concept, idea and thought, but also a continuous and vivid social practice, entailing respect for and protection of the basic rights of people living in real society. Talking about human rights in isolation from concrete reality will fail to guarantee the basic rights of the broad masses of the people and enhance their sense of gain, happiness and security. Consequently, the authenticity and rationality of human rights will be lost, together with their role to prompt historical progress. Human rights protection cannot be separated from the specific conditions of a country, and the development of human rights cause can only proceed from the national conditions and actual circumstances of a country. Due to the differences in economic development, social and political conditions, and historical and cultural traditions, it is natural for countries to differ in the specific mode for development and protection of human rights. The practice has proved that using a model to define the human rights of other countries, or even politicizing, weaponizing and instrumentalizing human rights, will not promote human rights progress in the countries concerned, but instead lead to serious human rights problems and humanitarian disasters.
A. The paradigm characteristics of China’s human rights science
China’s human rights science is rich in distinctive Chinese characteristics and is a human rights paradigm that belongs to China. First, it is a human rights theory established by the CPC in leading the Chinese people in long-term exploration and practice, especially in the great practice of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. The leadership of the CPC and the socialist system determine its socialist nature. Second, it is a human rights theory built by an Eastern power with a history of 5,000 years of civilization by inheriting and developing Marxist human rights theory, carrying forward the excellent traditional culture, drawing on the achievements of excellent human civilization, and integrating the excellent human rights civilization thinking of mankind. Third, it is a human rights theory constructed by a large developing country with a huge population to realize the enjoyment of human rights for all, and fully encapsulating the spirit of equality, sharing and universality of human rights. Fourth, it is a human rights theory consistent with China’s national conditions and the law of human rights development and constructed in promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese modernization. It insists on the unification of well-rounded material development and well-rounded human development. Fifth, it is a human rights theory constructed in the development of human society in the historical orientation of the 21st century. It boasts distinct contemporary and innovative features against the background of the new era and new development in the new century.
B. Characteristics of China’s human rights science
Specifically, China’s human rights science has the following five distinct qualities:
First, China’s human rights science is the study of human rights in socialism with Chinese characteristics. Socialism with Chinese characteristics is very different from traditional socialism, especially Soviet socialism; it respects laws, history and reality. Under its guidance, China’s human rights science adheres to the basic viewpoints of Marxist dialectical materialism and historical materialism, and continuously develops the Marxist concept of human rights in practice. As per the stages of socialism with Chinese characteristics, China is still in the initial stage of socialism, which emphasizes development as the first priority. During this stage, the central task of the Party and the state is to develop the economy, guarantee and improve people’s livelihood via development, improve the living standards of all people, promote the all-round development of all human rights undertakings, and promote all-round human development. Socialism with Chinese characteristics adheres to the organic unification of the Party’s leadership, the master’s status of the people of the country and the rule of law, as well as the organic unity of the Party’s leadership, the socialist system and respect for and protection of human rights. Its system ensures the consistency, equality and commonality of the interests of all the people, and lays an important institutional foundation for safeguarding social fairness and justice and realizing the all-round development of human rights. It accurately grasps world history and the general trend of global development, persists in proceeding from China’s national conditions and realities, and regards human rights as the achievements of human civilization and progress. It includes “respecting and protecting human rights” in the Constitution of the Communist Party of China and the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, making respecting and protecting human rights the resolute will of the Party and the state, and an important task of the CPC in governing the country. It upholds the organic unification of the interests of the state, the collective and the individual, and correctly grasps the relationship between state sovereignty and people’s human rights, collective rights and individual rights, positive human rights and negative human rights, and rights and obligations. The human rights theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics is different from not only Western capitalist human rights theory, but also traditional socialist human rights theory, and the human rights concept of some developing countries. It is a distinct Chinese theory on human rights.
Second, China’s human rights science is the people’s study of human rights. The people being the masters of the country is fundamental to China’s human rights. General Secretary Xi Jinping said that “people-orientation is the most prominent feature of the development path of China’s human rights.”17 People-orientation is the distinctive quality of Marxism and the fundamental attribute of the CPC. In socialist China, the main subject of the state is the people, and all the power of the state belongs to the people. The people-centered approach is the core essence of all contemporary theories of China’s human rights, the core concept of China’s human rights science, and the fundamental position of human rights in contemporary China. The people-centered concept of human rights takes consideration, love and concern for people as the starting point, and aims to achieve, safeguard and develop the fundamental interests of the greatest majority of the people. China’s human rights science respects the people’s subject status and firmly believes that the masses of the people are the creators of history and the driving force of historical progress. Respecting their subject position means adhering to the supremacy of the people and the supremacy of life. Putting the interests of the people first, and taking the interests of the people as the fundamental interests, the needs of the people as the fundamental needs, and popular satisfaction as the fundamental criterion, it aims to fully stimulate enthusiasm, initiative and creativity of the broad masses of the people, so that the people can become the main participants, promoters and beneficiaries of human rights development, thus realizing equal participation, equal development and equal enjoyment. Respecting the people’s subject status means adhering to the principle that development is for the people, development depends on the people, and the fruits of development are shared by all the people. It means focusing on solving the problem of unbalanced and insufficient development, addressing the most direct and realistic interests of the people, making the people’s yearning for a better life the goal, and striving to make their sense of gain, happiness and security more fulfilling, more secure and more sustainable in the process of development. Respecting the subject status means upholding equality before the law, respecting and protecting human rights throughout all links of legislation, law enforcement, and justice, constantly improving the legal system that embodies fair rights, fair opportunities, and fair rules, protecting civil and political rights in accordance with the law, protecting citizens’ economic, cultural, social, environmental and other rights according to law, and continuously improving legal protection for human rights.
Third, China’s human rights science is the study of human rights in development, which has three connotations. First, the concept of human rights is developing. Since the emergence of the idea of human rights in the “Axis Age”, human beings’ understanding of their own dignity and worth has been constantly elevated. In particular,since the emergence of human rights as a concept in the West in recent times, the people’s knowledge and understanding of human rights have been constantly changing, with the development of history and social progress. On this basis, the French jurist Karel Vasak put forward the theory of “Three Generations of Human Rights” in 1979. Since 1979, there have been many new developments in the theory of human rights, including genetic technology and human rights, digital technology and human rights, climate change and human rights, sustainable development and human rights, and so on. Second, the practice of human rights is developing. Human rights are not born, but historical. The science of human rights in development regards the progress of human society as a long-term historical process, which will inevitably involve a shift from a lower social form to a higher social form, and the development of human rights is also a historical process from insufficient to relatively sufficient to more sufficient. Therefore, the protection of human rights will always be an on-going process with no end point. Third, the realization of human rights is fundamentally driven by development. Progress is the eternal theme of humankind, and there is no hope for a stagnant or unchanging society, as it will fail to develop human rights cause, and eventually be eliminated from the stage of history. The theory of human rights in development believes that the production of materials always comes first, and that all human activities are based on the fundamental principle of ensuring survival. Only with progress can the right to development be realized, the right to subsistence guaranteed and the growth of all human rights promoted. Enhancing human rights protection through development and protecting and promoting human rights in the course of progress is the secret to the success of the human rights cause in China, and the fulcrum for promoting its development.
Fourth, China’s human rights science is a comprehensive study of human rights. Its comprehensive nature is mainly reflected in the following four aspects. First, it adheres to the extensive development of all human rights. China upholds the principle that “all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated”18 and strives to promote the all-round development of all human rights. As mentioned above, the rights system of China’s human rights science covers the basic elements and categories of human rights in the United Nations’ human rights instruments. Second, comprehensive human rights science upholds equal participation, equal development and same enjoyment by all people. Comprehensive human rights are not the human rights of a few or some, but of the entire people, without anyone left behind. Comprehensive human rights science closely links the development of the human rights cause with the vital interests of the broad masses of the people, focuses on addressing problems related to the people’s livelihood and the masses’ urgent difficulties and worries, and continues to exert efforts in such links as providing nurturing for the minors, education for the students, remuneration for the working, medical treatment for the sick, care for the elderly, housing for the homeless, and support for the disadvantaged, and strives to enable access for all the people to better education, more stable jobs, more satisfactory income, more reliable social security, higher levels of medical services, more comfortable living conditions, and a more beautiful environment. On this basis, comprehensive human rights place greater emphasis on the common prosperity of all people and the realization of human rights for all. Third, comprehensive human rights science upholds the unified and coordinated extensive development of the country and the comprehensive development of all human rights. In order to promote the development of various undertakings of the Party and the country, the report of the 19th CPC National Congress clearly put forward the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan and the Four-Pronged Comprehensive Strategy, in a bid to promote the extensive development of economic, political, cultural, social and ecological civilization construction, and promote the all-round development of all human rights with the comprehensive development of the Party and the country’s undertakings. Fourth, extensive human rights science insists on promoting the free and well-rounded development of human beings. Realizing the independent and expansive development of human beings is the scientific expression of the value and significance of the future society through Marxism, and the core essence of Marxist anthropology. It is the ideal goal of human rights, and it necessitates constantly creating conditions for realization. To build a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way, to embark on a new journey of constructing a modern socialist country in an expansive way, and to promote the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with Chinese modernization is to continuously provide more favorable conditions for the realization of independent and well-rounded human development.
Fifth, China’s human rights science is an innovative human rights science. It is an intellectual, moral and cultural force presented by China in respecting, protecting and developing human rights, and represents the just and advanced nature of human rights civilization in the new century. It is a product of the development of the times, with innovation as a prominent feature. Firstl its innovation is embodied in being the culmination of the excellent civilization theory of human rights. In the ideological system of China’s human rights science, there are many factors that are the crystallization of the wisdom of respecting and protecting human rights under various forms of civilization in the world, including traditional and modern; they are from countries of the East, the West, and the South; there are Marxist, traditional socialists, and other social systems. Therefore, in this sense, it can also be said that China’s human rights science is the product of integrating the principle of universality of human rights with China’s reality. Second, the innovation of China’s human rights science is embodied in creating a new theory of human rights civilization. In socialist countries, how to achieve respect for and protection of human rights has left profound lessons in the history of the international communist movement. It is precisely for this reason that the
international argument that socialism cannot achieve respect for and protection of human rights has been rampant for some time. The great achievements of socialism with Chinese characteristics in respecting and protecting human rights can be said to have declared the bankruptcy of relevant international speeches. Socialism with Chinese characteristics has built a set of human rights theories that conform to the trend of the times and suit the national conditions of China, and has enriched and developed the theory on the diversity of human rights civilizations. Third, the innovation of China’s human rights science is reflected in the proposal of China’s new concepts, categories and expressions of human rights. China put forward the important thesis that “the people’s happy life is the greatest human right,” respected the people’s status as the subject, made the concept of human rights more concrete, realistic and real, and built the ideological foundation of China’s human rights science. China proposed the concept of human rights that “human rights are historical, concrete and realistic,” studied the development of human rights in the long river of human historical development, persisted in proceeding from the historical and cultural background, the specific needs of the people and the actual national conditions, and constructed the triple value logic of China’s human rights science. China proposed that “the right to subsistence and the right to development are the primary basic human rights,” regarding the right to subsistence and the right to development as a body of rights, accurately grasping the relationship between the two rights and their special role in human rights protection, and constructing the theoretical basis for its human rights science. China put forward “protecting and promoting human rights in development,” and created a “development-oriented approach to human rights” in practice, continuously enhancing the people’s sense of gain, happiness and security, and building a practical paradigm for its human rights science. In the spirit of openness and inclusiveness, China adheres to the principle of inclusiveness, mutual respect, complementarity and common progress among different civilizations, puts forward the major concept of “building a community with a shared future for mankind” for all countries, and builds a beautiful human rights vision in which all countries share peace and security, the fruits of development and the well-being of mankind.
V. Conclusion
Building a human rights science that conforms to the universality principle of human rights and has distinctive Chinese characteristics, realizing its systematization, knowledge-orientation and specialization, and making it a public good for global human rights, is an inevitable requirement for promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and creating a new form of human civilization with Chinese modernization. Meanwhile, the construction of China’s human rights science and independent human rights knowledge system is a new and complex social science system project. We must stand at a new starting point in the new century and new era to think innovatively and actively promote it, and strive to turn China’s human rights practice into the ideological, theoretical and value achievements of human rights civilization.
When talking about the development of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics, General Secretary Xi Jinping once pointed out that “we should focus on the major issues facing the development of China and the world, and strive to put forward concepts, propositions and plans that can reflect China’s position, Chinese wisdom and Chinese values. We must let the world know not only ‘China in culinary art,’ but also ‘China in the academia,’ ‘China in theory,’ ‘China in philosophy and social science,’ as well as ‘China in development,’ ‘China in opening up,’ and ‘China that contributes to human civilization.’”19 China’s human rights science has distinctive Chinese characteristics, Chinese style and Chinese air. As an important content of Chinese scholarship and Chinese thought, and an important part of human rights theory, it should be shared by human society.
(Translated by QIAN Chuijun)
* LU Guangjin ( 鲁广锦 ), Vice President of the China Society for Human Rights Studies, Professor of Jilin University Human Rights Institute, Doctor of Laws. This article is a phased result of “Research on the New Form of Chinese Human Rights Civilization,” a key project of the National Social Science Foundation of China (project approval No. 21AZD095) and “Theoretical Interpretation and Discourse Shaping of the Road of Chinese Rights,” a project of the Philosophy and Social Science Research Innovation Team of Jilin University (project approval No. 2022CXTD05). The author hereby extends his heartfelt gratitude to Professor Zhang Yonghe and Professor Meng Qingtao of the Human Rights Institute School of Southwest University of Political Science and Law for providing the information on the construction of human rights disciplines in China and abroad.
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2. Xi Jinping, “Steadfastly Following the Chinese Path to Promote Further Progress in Human Rights,” Qiushi 12 (2022): 9.
3. Xi Jinping, “Chinese President Xi Jinping Sends Congratulatory Letter to 2021 South-South Human Rights Forum,” People’s Daily, December 9, 2021, page 1.
4. “Correctly Understanding and Vigorously Promoting Chinese Modernization,” People’s Daily, February 8, 2023, page 1.
5. Xi Jinping, On the Party’s Publicity and Morality Work (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2020), 322.
6. Central Compilation and Translation Bureau, The Complete Works of Marx and Engels, vol. 39 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1974), 189.
7. Dong Yunhu and Liu Wuping, World Documents of Human Rights (Chengdu: Sichuan People’s Publishing House, 1990), 6.
8. Xi Jinping, On the Party’s Publicity and Morality Work (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2020), 220-221.
9. Ibid., 219.
10. Ibid., 232-233.
11. Ibid., 10.
12. Ibid., 261.
13. Xi Jinping, “Steadfastly Following the Chinese Path to Promote Further Progress in Human Rights,” Qiushi 12 (2022): 6.
14. Ibid., 6-7.
15. Karl Jaspers, The Origin and Goal of History, translated by Li Xuetao (East China Normal University Press, 2018), 7-8.
16. Xi Jinping, “Steadfastly Following the Chinese Path to Promote Further Progress in Human Rights,” Qiushi 12 (2022): 9.
17. Ibid., 7.
18. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Human Right: A Compilation of International Instruments, Volume I (First Part) Universal Instruments, United Nations Publications (Chinese edition), 2002, page 45.
19. Xi Jinping, On the Party’s Publicity and Morality Work (Beijing: Central Party Literature Press, 2020), 228.
