Human Rights with Chinese Characteristics? [4.3361]
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56754/2735-7236.2025.3361Keywords:
Human Rights, China, Universalism, PluralismAbstract
This article examines the conception of human rights developed in recent decades in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the tensions it generates, and its international projection, with particular emphasis on the concept of “human rights with Chinese characteristics”. The formulation of this concept in the PRC’s official discourse over the past decade, its use in recent Universal Periodic Reviews, and the country’s approach to the adherence and treatment of human rights raise several questions regarding its theoretical depth and its contributions to multicultural dialogue.
To address these issues, a documentary review is conducted that considers, on the one hand, the theoretical evolution of the concept of human rights in the context of China’s recent history and, on the other, external perspectives. This provides an analytical framework with emphasis on the doctrine of Asian values and the tension between particularism and universalism. The study concludes that the formulation of “human rights with Chinese characteristics” reflects an attempt to adapt the universal approach to specific historical and cultural contexts. This perspective, however, generates tensions with the Western liberal model, highlighting the need for intercultural dialogue to move toward global consensus.
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