No place for human rights in China’s white paper for future world

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 02 October 2019, 22:28 GMT]
The People’s Republic of China (PRC), with its ambition as a rising global power, showcased this week its 70th anniversary of the founding of the republic staging big celebrations and a massive military parade in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Along with the fanfare, the RPC also spelt out its worldview for future China and the world combined in a white paper titled “China and the World in the New Era.” Although the Xi Jinping doctrine was upholding the principles of the UN Charter, the term ‘human rights’ was totally missing in the document, which perceives state-to-state relations as the bedrock of international relations. Even the term civilisation was used to defend the states-centric narrative. There were no specific concerns about stateless nations and peoples that don’t fit into the states-centric status quo of the so-called world order.





“Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, China will continue to forge ahead on its socialist path. We have committed to a people-centered approach and given top priority to development,” the document says.

Virtually all paragraphs in the white paper overtly deploy the term ‘development’.

“Development is China’s top priority. Over the past 70 years, China has benefited from a peaceful and stable external environment, and in the future it also needs such an external environment,” the document states.

The RPC’s State Council Information Office published the white paper on 27 September, three days ahead of the 70th year celebrations.

“International politics and the economic system have been dominated by Western powers since the First Industrial Revolution. In more recent decades, emerging market and developing countries have realised rapid growth by seizing the historic opportunities presented by economic globalisation,” the document noted.

However, the narrative expressed in the document was mainly defensive projecting arguments such as “the Chinese nation does not have the gene to invade others and dominate the world.”



“From the mid-19th century, China was abused by the Western powers and left with indelible memories of the suffering brought about by war and instability. It will never impose the suffering it has endured on other nations.”

“As a country that suffered abuse and humiliation in the past, China aims to win dignity, security and a better life for its people through its own development. China naturally develops and becomes stronger, but does not want to threaten, challenge or replace any other country in the process, nor will it seek hegemony,” the RPC whitepaper claims.

“No one can deprive the Chinese people of their right to pursue a better life. No one can stop China from moving forward,” it proclaims.

The paper projects China as a civilisational state.

* * *

Talking about civilisations, the paper says:

“Human civilization should be open and inclusive, and based on equality and diversity. Civilization thrives in diversity. Every civilization represents the collective memory of a nation or a people. All civilizations in the world, including the Chinese civilization, are the fruit of human development. All civilizations are equal. No civilization is perfect on the planet. Nor is it devoid of merit. No single civilization can be judged superior to another. Human civilization is inclusive. As the fruit of human labor and wisdom, every culture deserves respect and is worth cherishing. Attempts to judge the superiority of one race or civilization to another, to transform or replace other civilizations, and to sow discord between civilizations, are absurd and disastrous. These attempts will only increase misunderstanding between civilizations and push the world towards fragmentation and confrontation.

“Exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations should be strengthened. All countries should treat each other with respect and as equals. While discarding arrogance and prejudice, every country should enhance its awareness of the differences between its own civilization and other civilizations, increase dialogue between different cultures, and strive for harmonious coexistence. Every country should value its own civilization, appreciate that of others, and facilitate their development, and this will contribute to the flourishing of all civilizations. All civilizations should be open and inclusive, and promote common development by drawing from each other’s strengths through exchanges and mutual learning. All civilizations should progress with the times and sustain their development through innovation.”



* * *

The genocide-affected nation of Eezham Tamils and the stateless ancient civilisation of Tamils witnessed on 26 May, 2009, how the RPC promoted a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council.

The RPC-promoted resolution was only condemning the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and it went much worse when it welcomed “the liberation by the government of Sri Lanka of tens of thousands of its citizens that were kept by the LTTE against their will as hostages.”

That resolution, condemned as the “unprincipled, shameless, Orwellian UN resolution ever,” was passed with the backing of 29 countries, including India and Pakistan at that time.



The RPC, which has committed genocidal injustices against the nation of Eezham Tamils as its geopolitical competitors, the USA and India, is yet to reveal how it seeks to mend fences with the Tamil civilisation of equal linguistic antiquity and legacy as its own civilisation.

The US, which was co-sponsoring a resolution with the genocidal state of Sri Lanka dodging focus on genocide and international investigations at the UN Human Rights Council, has pulled out of the council in June 2018.

The UN Human Rights Council was undermining the US ‘national interests’ and its ‘allies’ such as Israel, has been the view of the Trump administration.

Those among the Tamils, who were expecting the US to deliver justice and brushed away the criticism against aligning with powers that continued to criminalise the Tamil struggle as ‘terrorism’, are now stranded aloof in the corridors of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The US, led by President Donald Trump and India, which is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have aligned together as the ‘major strategic partners’ in the Indo-Pacific, pitting against the expanding ‘Belt and Road’ ambitions of the RPC.

China, India and Pakistan are among the current 47 Member States of the UN Human Rights Council. The Member States are elected by the majority of members of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

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External Links:

ENGLISH.GOV.CN:		Full Text: China and the World in the New Era
UN.org:		UN Charter: Full text

Chronology: