Human Rights in China - Counterargument By The PRC Government

Counterargument By The PRC Government

The Government of the People's Republic of China has argued that idea of "Asian values" means that the "welfare" of the collective should always be put ahead of the rights of any individual whenever conflicts between these arise. It argues that there is a responsibility of the government to create a "harmonious society", and that in some cases it is necessary to persuade or force individuals to make sacrifices in their rights for the wider needs of society. It argues that a strong and stable authority is required in order to regulate the potentially conflicting interests of the public and enforce a compromise and that Governments with curtailed authority would fail to take on such a responsibility.

The Chinese government points towards an alleged rapid social deterioration in Western societies, claiming that there has been an increase in geographic, religious and racial segregation; rising crime rates; family breakdown; industrial action; vandalism; and political extremism within Western societies. They believe these are a direct result of an excess of individual freedom, saying that “Too much freedom is dangerous.” China argues that these actions in Western Nations are all violations of human rights. China believes that these should be taken into account when assessing a country's human right records. Furthermore, the government criticizes the United States, which publishes human rights reports annually, by insisting that the United States has also caused human rights abuses such as the invasion of Iraq.

The PRC government also argues that the notion of human rights should include economic standards of living and measures of health and economic prosperity. On cultural grounds they argue that as the economic, cultural and political situations differ substantially between countries, a universal 'one-size-fits-all' definition of human rights should not apply internationally.