Human rights, a substantial political stake in contemporary China
Human Rights have been at the core of the political debate in China, especially since the June 4, 1989 Massacre. The Chinese Communist Party upholds a relativist conception of human rights, in the name of Marxism-Leninism, as much as in the name of the “traditional Chinese culture” that Xi Jinping has been striving to reintegrate into the ruling ideology. While exponents of the New Left, the modern Neo-Confucianists and nationalists, have denounced human rights as a foreign concept, a growing number of Chinese, supported by lawyers and journalists, have been advocating for their implementation. Even though the Rights Defence Movement, which was initiated in 2003, has been under great pressure since Xi’s access to power, an increasing number of citizens invoke human rights to stand up against the consolidation of the dictatorship.
Keywords
- human rights
- new left
- modern neo-confucianism
- marxist-leninist
- rights defence movement