Human Rights in China

Schedule

Friday, July 8th, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon
3744, Jean-Brillant street
Room: 580-32 (5th floor)

1. The Future of Human Rights in China

Speaker:
Stéphanie Balme is a visiting professor at Tsinghua University School of Law (Beijing), China delegate for the Civil Law Initiative and an instructor at the China-EU School of Law. In Beijing, she is developing an international research program entitled "Justice, Law and Society in China," which is part of a general and comparative examination of the evolution of the rule of law, constitutionalism and judicial systems of emerging countries in the context of the globalization of law. She is also in charge of the China office of the Foundation for Continental Law, vice-president of the Franco-Chinese Legal Study and Research Association at the University of Paris V and a consultant for many international organizations.

Summary:
The events of 1989 in China and elsewhere, followed by the Olympic Games in 2008 and the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize 2010, thrust the issue of human rights to the forefront of discussions concerning China. At once a developing country and an emerging power, China has challenged the way in which contemporary societies have developed based on notions of human rights and the rule of law. In contrast with the "transitology" approach, classical Chinese experience shows that despite considerable changes, the familiar categories of the rule of law, capitalism and authoritarianism have been re-interpreted to give rise to a justice system that lacks autonomy from the political power structure, a capitalist system that operates without clear, unambiguous rules and a resilient authoritarian system.
This seminar will examine (i) legal and political rights in China during the twentieth century, (ii) the extent to which fundamental freedoms enjoy effective protection in China and (iii) the issue of human rights in China in the context of diplomacy and international cooperation. In conclusion, we will consider the long-term influence that the international community could have on the emergence of the rule of law in a prosperous China. In this context, will law and human rights change China?

Mandatory readings:
 [s.a.] "Charter 08". Dans Charter 08 for reform and democracy in China, accessed March 20th, 2011.
 [s.a]. "Constitution of the People’s Republic of China". [s.l.] : People’s Daily Online, accessed March 20th, 2011.
 BALME, Stéphanie and Michael DOWDLE. "Introduction: Exploring or Constitutionalism in 21st Century China". In Building Constitutionalism in China, Stéphanie Balme and Michael Dowdle (eds.), pp. 1-20. New York: Palgrave, 2009.
 CHINESE GOVERNMENT. "Progress in China’s Human Rights in 2009". Beijing: [s.é.], September 2010.

2. On Behalf of Anti-terrorism... A Reflection on the Rights of Ethnic Minorities in China

Speaker:
Ting-Sheng Lin is professor of Political Science at the Université du Québec À Montréal (UQÀM), researcher at the Centre d’études sur l’intégration et la mondialisation (CEIM), and director of the Observatoire de la Chine. Based on his experiences in Taiwan, he chose the Chinese migrant workers as the subject of his doctoral thesis. His recent work concerns the following topics: the political economy of the Chinese reform, the role of the State in social affairs, the relation State/provinces, the reflection about sustainable development, the formulation of social and economic policies, the reforms on the local administrative system, privatization of public enterprises in China and its consequences, the situation of migrant workers in major coastal cities, and government’s responses to social movements.

Mandatory readings:
 Amnesty international, People’s Republic of China: Gross Violations of Human Rights in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, April 1999
 China’s Ethnic Policy and Common Prosperity and Development of All Ethnic Groups, Information Office of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, Oxford University Press 2010 [Access reserved for participants only]
 Gladney, Dru C., 2004, « La question Ouïgour. Entre islamisation et ethnicisation », Annales. Histoire, Sciences Sociales, Éditions de l’EHESS, 2004/5-6, pp. 1157-1182 [Access reserved for participants only]
 Pan Guang, 2006, East Turkestan Terrorism and the Terrorist Arc: China’s Post-9/11 Anti-Terror Strategy, China and Eurasia Forum Quarterly, Volume 4, No.2 (2006) pp. 19-24, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program [Access reserved for participants only]