By Luo Yanhua

Prof. Luo Yanhua from Peking University

Between September 2005 and April 2006, China's national leaders made four significant proposals to the international community on building a harmonious world.1 This shows that China, as a responsible country, is bringing to the international community its own concepts and ideas on how to cope with international conflicts. This action is a great effort and endeavor on China's part in resolving current international conflicts.

  I. The Concept of a Harmonious World also Applies to International Human Rights.

  Under the present international situation, China proposed the concept and idea of building a harmonious world. The inharmonious and conflicting situation of international human rights has existed for a long time, so the concept of building a harmonious world is of great importance in reducing the conflicts in the field of international human rights.

  1. The essence of the concept of a harmonious world

  The concept of harmony (hexie in Chinese pinyin) is at the heart of traditional Chinese culture. Seeking a harmonious society and world has therefore been a long-standing goal of the Chinese people. In China's early history, there were the ideas of "yihe weigui"cherishing harmony), "he'er butong" (co-existing with differences) and "heshi shengwu" (harmony creates life). The word "he" has several connotations in the old Chinese language. When used as a verb, it mainly means to distribute in an orderly fashion, i.e., the orderly distribution of different people and things so that they can be harmonious. Resultantly, the word "he" has been used in adjective form to connote obliging, harmonious, moderate, just right and so on. The character "he" in "he weigui" means moderate and just right. The whole phrase connotes "he best way is to make everything just right." The character "he" in "he'er butong" is an ancient philosophical term, which is used with "tong"(same). The whole phrase connotes "reaching true harmony and unification under various conflicting elements." 2 "Heshi shengwu" (harmony creates life) demonstrates that traditional Chinese culture regards the harmonious existence of opposing parties as the power and source of sustainable development.

  Chinese culture has always attached great importance to the concept of differences, regarding them as the foundation of development. However, the concept of difference also implies that there is an element of "he," which means everything is harmoniously related to each other. The concept of "he'er butong" shows that despite differences, everything is interrelated, and nothing can possibly exist alone. The concept of "he" refers to how many different elements can co-exist in different networks. The essence of "he" is to moderate differences so as to reach new harmonious unification and so that all the different elements can progress and form different new elements.3

  Therefore, the essence of the concept of a harmonious world is to seek harmony while acknowledging differences. This idea is crucial to solving the major conflicts in the global geopolitical situations of today. According to the principles of "he'er butong" (co-existing with differences), each country and nation has the right to maintain and sustain its cultural traditions, to express its personalities and characteristics, to protect its rights and to play a role in the international community. All countries and nations should acknowledge the differences that exist between each other. They should also recognize that other countries also have the right to express their characteristics, protect their rights and play their own a role. In achieving "he'er butong" (co-existing with differences), the Confucian "doctrine of balance" has a very important role to play. It stresses harmony and moderation, and believes that "zhong he" (neutrality) is the ideal state.  When this idea is applied to society of today, it means acknowledging conflicts and taking the middle road between two extremes so as to find a common ground. It also means preventing conflicts from escalating through dialogues, compromises and concessions.

  Therefore, at this moment the harmonious world we are seeking is not a world where everything is the same but one where differences co-exist harmoniously with each other. We don't deny the differences among countries, civilizations and interests, nor do we cover over conflicts. We acknowledge varieties, differences and conflicts, and we also put ourselves into others' shoes. Through dialogues and negotiations we coordinate each other's interests and concerns. We either make compromises or co-exist with differences so as to prevent conflicts from intensifying, and so that different nations can be friendly towards each other and those increasingly complex global issues can be resolved peacefully.4

  2. The concept of a harmonious world is important to help improve the inharmonious situation in the field of international human rights

  The field of international human rights has long been inharmonic. In the first half of the 20th century, the reconsideration of the two world wars helped introduce the idea of human rights into the international community and it became an important part of global protection. Since then, the human rights issue has developed very rapidly. Despite the influence of various international political struggles, the basic international human right system, i.e. the international human rights constitution, has been set up, and is improved upon every day. So far, it has evolved into a substantial international legal system. Respecting and protecting human rights has become a global mutual recognition and everybody's ideal.

  But in practice, the post-war international human rights situation has never been harmonious. This is reflected in intense human rights struggles in the international community. These conflicts exist not only between western and eastern countries with their different social systems, but also between northern and southern nations at different stages of economic development. During the 40 years of the cold war, the human rights issue became an instrument of dispute between the East and the West. Headed by the US, Western countries frequently attacked socialist countries using the human right issues as a weapon. For several decades the US and the former USSR engaged in a propaganda war over the human rights issue. Each side attacked, abused and slandered the other, while holding itself up as a paragon of perfection.

  The same dispute between the Northern and Southern hemispheres was also ignited during the cold war, and it intensified further in the aftermath. The post-cold war human rights dispute between the Northern and Southern hemispheres, i.e. developed and developing countries is a major element in current international human rights conflicts. Developed Western nations frequently criticize developing ones over their human rights situation and their human rights policies. Developed countries often attach human rights conditions when providing economic aid to developing countries, while the latter respond in a way that protects their own interests.

  To sum up, the inharmonious international human rights situation in the past few decades is reflected in the following aspects:

  1. The politicization of human rights issues. In particular, where members of the human rights committee have turned the committee into an arena to attack and slander each other.

  2. The employment of double standards on human rights issues. This began during the cold war, but still remains today.

  3. Some countries impose their own human rights standards and values on other countries. This engenders human rights resistance and destroys international relations.

  4. Serious differences and intense disputes still exist on many issues of great significance, such as the relationship between human rights and national sovereignty.

  In the 21st century, the present inharmonious situation in the field of international human rights needs to be urgently rectified. China's introduction of the concept and its proposal of building a harmonious world, influenced by its traditional ideas of co-existing with differences and neutrality, is without doubt a concrete step towards improving the inharmonious situation of international human rights and alleviating conflicts in the field of international human rights.

  II. The Relationship between Building a Harmonious World and Developing International Human Rights

  Through our study of the relationship between building a harmonious world and developing international human rights, we found that the two are closely related, as their conditions (respect for and protection of human rights) are the bricks in building a harmonious world, while building a harmonious world benefits the development of international human rights.

  1. Respect for and protection of human rights are the bricks in building a harmonious world

  Respect for and protection of human rights are the bricks in building both a harmonious world and a harmonious society. As an old Chinese saying goes, "Opportunities vouchsafed by Heaven are less important than terrestrial advantages, which in turn are less important than the unity among people." The harmonious relationship among people is the basis of a stable nation. In order to realize true harmony among people, a key factor is the realization of social justice and fairness, and respect for and protection of human rights. In a harmonious society, rights are the central norm and the basic law. The key to building a harmonious society is the construction of a well-balanced and orderly rights protecting system, with those rights being the basic social norms, the protection of various legal interests, and the maintenance of harmony.5 Only the protection of human rights and the securing of social justice can ensure that people live and work in peace and contentment, that a society develops steadily and harmoniously, and that an international community made of various harmonious societies can be called a harmonious world. When a nation has a poor human rights situation, complaints and conflicts abound. It is not a stable society, not to mention a harmonious one. Civil strife could be induced and regional, or even global peace and stability could be jeopardized. All this would hinder the building of a harmonious world.

  Therefore, in order to build a harmonious world, a country should have people-oriented policies, and its citizens should enjoy true human rights and equal opportunities. A country will not achieve a harmonious society until these are realized. A harmonious international relationship will not be formed until all countries pay full attention to the protection of human rights and peaceful coexistence, mutual cooperation and communal development.

  2. Building a harmonious world will benefit the development of international human rights

  To prove this point we should first understand the major characteristics of a harmonious world. The author of this paper believes that a harmonious world should have the following three characteristics, which would form the essential conditions and power for the development of international human rights: 1) A lasting peaceful existence. 2) Common prosperity. 3) Mutual respect for and from various civilizations.

  (1) Lasting peace vs. international human rights development

  Lasting peace is not only a basic premise of the development of international human rights, but the right to a lasting peace is also a fundamental human right itself. The international community has long recognized the relationship between peace and human rights. The Proclamation of Teheran passed at the 1968 World Conference on Human Rights clearly raised the relationship between peace and human rights, and stated that peace is the essential premise for realizing human rights and basic freedoms. The right to peace was announced as a basic human right in the 1970s. In 1976, the UN Commission on Human Rights adopted a resolution that stated everyone is entitled to live and enjoy full economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights under international peace and security. On December 15, 1978, the UN General Assembly passed the Declaration of Preparing for a Peaceful Life for All Societies. It stated that respecting the right to peace, like any other human rights, is in the common interest of all humankind, and is the essential premise for all countries, big or small, to progress in all fields. On November 12, 1984, the UN General Assembly passed the Declaration of People Entitled to the Right to Peace. It stated that a life without war is fundamental to the promotion of the material benefits and progress of all nations, as well as to the realization of the various rights and basic freedoms stipulated by the UN. The right to peace was thus included as part of the international human right law.6

  Nevertheless, peace has been only an ideal rather than reality. Taking recent history as an example, five large-scale wars have broken out since the 1990s, namely, the Gulf War, the War in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Kosovo War, the War on Terrorism in Afghanistan, and, most recently, the War in Iraq. All of these conflicts have seriously impaired the human rights of those affected. The four-year War in Bosnia-Herzegovina left 278,000 people dead, and another 1.37 million displaced. Economic losses totaled US $45 billion. During the 78-day Kosovo War, the casualty figures were 1,800 killed and 6,000 people wounded. Nearly 1 million people became refugees. Yugoslavia's GDP decreased by 40 percent, and unemployment increased by 33 percent. The war dragged 20 percent of the country's population below the poverty line, and another 60 percent to its brink.7 While the dust from these wars has barely settled, new threats and risks have emerged. China proposes the building of a harmonious world against this background. It is crucial for the development and protection of international human rights.

  (2) Common prosperity vs. inter-national human rights development

  Common prosperity is the foundation for and the safeguard of international human rights development. The right to development itself is a basic human right. Common prosperity should be the result of the mutual economic development of all countries. However, the reality is that the world's development is imbalanced, the level of development in each country is very different and the North-South gap is getting wider. Developed countries benefit greatly from globalization, while some developing countries are pushed to the verge of collapse. Many developing nations have seen little or no improvement in the past few decades. The poverty and chaos caused by development issues has become the main barrier for developing countries in improving their human rights situations. The enormous disparity between the North and the South only adds to international confrontation, and is the reason behind armed conflicts and wars in many countries and regions. As early as the 1960s, to enhance their own development, developing countries introduced a proposal to build a new international economic order. In the 1970s, in coordination with the struggle for this new international economic order, developing countries proposed the idea of the right to development. On November 23, 1979, the UN General Assembly adopted the Resolution on the Right to Development, which officially recognized the right to development as a human right. It also acknowledged that each country and its people are entitled to equal rights to development opportunities. On December 4, 1986, the UN General Assembly passed the Declaration on the Right to Development and again, it recognized the right to development as an indeprivable human right.

  A country's economic and social development should be synchronized with its human rights development. The Declaration on the Right to Development states that every citizen of every country is entitled to participate in, promote and enjoy their economic, social, cultural and political development, in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms are sufficiently realized. To put that in other words, human rights and fundamental freedoms cannot be realized without economic, social, cultural and political development. Nor can a nation's human rights be secured without its full economic, social, cultural and political development. Rights can never exist beyond a society's economic structure. Nor can a society's cultural development, as it is subject to economic limitations.8

  Development is currently a common issue faced by all countries. As each country is at a different stage, each country faces different developmental problems. The current unjust and unreasonable international economic order continues to prevent countries from enjoying equal opportunities for mutual development and mutual prosperity. It is imperative that we change this unreasonable international economic order, and thus provide each country with equal opportunities for development. Only common prosperity can create the right environment for the development of international human rights.

  (3) Mutual respect for and exchange of civilization diversities vs. international human right development

  As a result of historical evolution, a variety of diverse civilizations exist in the world today. Diverse civilizations are important in that they form the cornerstone of building a harmonious world. Civilizations differ, but they also co-exist. It is the communication and exchanges between different civilizations that push forward the progress of human civilization as a whole. On October 20, 2005, UNESCO passed the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Forms of Cultural Expressions. The Convention confirms that cultural plurality is a basic characteristic of humankind, and that it creates a colorful and interesting world that gives people more options for improving their capabilities and forming their perspectives on values. It is hence a major propeller for the sustainable development of various communities, races and nations.9

  Conversely, the mutual respect for and exchange between different civilizations can also become a driver of international human rights development. On the one hand, the concept of human rights is an important part of human civilization and helps its advancement. And on the other, civilization has a great influence on the concept of human rights. This is particularly profound and persistent where the influence of religious beliefs is concerned. It is a fact that the influence of different civilizations can result in different interpretations of human rights, and how to realize their development. But historically, these differences have sometimes been misunderstood, and the result has been long-standing conflicts and disputes over international human rights. Such misunderstandings have arisen out of specific ideologies and circumstances throughout the years. Nations then were unwilling or unable to analyze ideas within the concept of a harmonious world. Now that this concept has been introduced, varying attitudes towards human rights may become a driving force behind the development of human rights. But countries need to reconsider the different understandings of human rights within the concept of building a harmonious world, and recognize the idea that "harmony creates life." Different interpretations and means of development of human rights in different countries are based on those countries's particular histories and civilizations. Each is the crystallization of human wisdom against its own cultural background, and each has its own advantages. Mutual respect and communication will improve mutual understanding. That will in turn reduce conflicts in human rights--indeed learning from one another's advantages will help raise one another's human right levels. That will in turn push forward the progress of international human right development. The Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Forms of Cultural Expressions holds that cultural diversity plays a crucial role in realizing the human rights and fundamental freedoms that are commonly recognized by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other documents.10

  III. The Enlightenment of the Concept of a Harmonious World on International Human Right Development

  The concept of building a harmonious world brings the following enlightenments on resolving international human rights conflicts and promoting international human right development:

  1. To advocate tolerance in the field of international human rights

  As mentioned earlier in this paper, one of the essences of China's idea of harmony is "coexisting with differences." A harmonious world should therefore be one that contains cultural diversity. While a country maintains its own cultural traditions and sustains its own characteristics, it should at the same time recognize other countries's cultural differences and characteristics. Countries should tolerate, respect and co-exist harmoniously with each other. This is crucial to resolving disputes and conflicts in international human rights.

  Despite the fact that the concept of human rights is engraved into everyone's mind, and enjoying human rights is everyone's common ideal and goal, people coming from different cultural backgrounds still have different interpretations of human rights, and different means of realizing them.

  Since we know that human rights concepts are fundamentally influenced by cultural backgrounds, differences are to be expected. These differences, and the different ways of realizing human rights, are exact reflections of cultural diversity in the human rights field. If we are to co-exist with differences, we should accept and tolerate the different understandings of human rights and different means of realizing them. We should respect the different decisions that each country makes. Only by doing so can international human rights develop, and the inharmonious situation in the field of international human rights truly change.

  2. To learn from each other in the field of international human rights

  As mentioned earlier in this paper, diversity exists in the international human rights field. This diversity is to some degree another expression of the unique characteristics of human rights. This uniqueness refers to the fact that with different historical and cultural backgrounds, and different economic levels, countries have different definitions of human rights, and different ways of realizing them. This fact results in varying human rights decisions taken by different countries, as well as intense human rights disputes. Certain countries are constantly criticized and attacked by other ones, while their efforts are rarely recognized or acknowledged, as they might deserve. With the introduction of the concept of a harmonious world, it is high time that this issue is reconsidered. We believe that as long as we all make sincere efforts to work towards a common human rights goal, all human right policies implemented by different countries should be implemented rationally according to their own domestic situations. All are contributions to the development course of international human rights. Each country's human right policies have their own advantages. If we try to learn and draw lessons from each other, our human right policies will improve and the overall level of international human rights will rise dramatically.

  3. To advocate dialogues and communications in the field of international human rights

  As mentioned earlier, differences between theory and practice have always existed in the field of international human rights. Over the years, some countries have tried to impose their own values on other countries. This has resulted in numerous confrontations and barriers. The traditional Chinese cultural concept of neutrality upholds the idea that during times of conflicts and confrontations, dialogues and consultations should be held so as to prevent conflicts from escalating, and to eventually solve the conflicts. This concept also applies to conflicts and confrontations in the field of international human rights. By engaging in dialogues and consultations, we can better understand each other, eliminate barriers, reduce differences and alleviate contradictions. In recent years China has carried out active dialogues and communications with the EU, Australia, the US, Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Brazil, Japan and others. It has forged many agreements on human rights and made several fruitful achievements.

  4. To advocate the principle of equality in the field of international human rights

  As mentioned earlier, it is entirely normal to hold different interpretations of international human rights, and there is no right or wrong. However, in practice, certain countries simply refuse to take a perspective of equality when exploring the issue of human rights with other countries. They regard themselves as superior and believe their human rights standards should be applied to all other countries. They like to think of themselves as the human rights judge, and try to impose their own will on other countries. They deny other countries?human rights efforts, and ignore their human rights achievements. They even dismiss certain internationally recognized human rights standards. On some important issues, these certain countries act arbitrarily and totally ignore the will of the majority of the international community, demanding instead that all others bend to their will. This fact is the main reason behind the inharmonious situation in the field of international human rights. Whether or not this inharmonious situation can be changed depends on the concerted efforts of the international community. We sincerely hope that these countries will rethink their attitudes, treat other countries with equality and learn to respect and co-operate with other countries.

  In addition, the practice of international human rights shows that the principle of equality is the key to successful human right dialogues. If countries adopt the attitude of mutual respect and equal cooperation with their dialogues, then there will be very positive results and sufficient progress. But if one country tries to impose its own will on others, and lacks respect for the others, there will be very little progress indeed. The principle of equality is, therefore, the decisive force for successful dialogues on human rights.   

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1. On September 15, 2005, at the Summit Meeting to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the UN, Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered a speech titled "Build Towards a Harmonious World with Lasting Peace and Common Prosperity." He brought up a 4- point proposal for building a harmonious world with lasting peace and common prosperity. On December 16, 2005, during his visit to Europe, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao delivered a speech titled "Respecting Different Civilizations and Building a Harmonious World" at the Paris Ecole Polytechnique. On December 31, 2005, on China Radio International, Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered a New Year'S Congratulatory Speech titled "To Build a Harmonious World with Lasting Peace and Common Prosperity." On April 22, 2006, President Hu Jintao delivered a keynote speech at Yale University and again brought up the proposal of building a harmonious world with lasting peace and common prosperity.

2. Dictionary of Ancient Chinese Language, published in 2003 by the Commercial Press, P563.

3. "Harmony Creates Life" by Le Daiyun on May 14, 2001, http://www.iafcc.org, browsed on August 25, 2006.

4. Jin Yingzhong, "On Building a Harmonious World with Long-lastinge Peace and Common Prosperity--Summary of the Symposium on Building a Harmonious World with Lasting Peace and Common Prosperity" published in the Jiefang Daily on March 27, 2006, website: http://www.

jfdaily. com.cn, browsed on August 25, 2006.

5. Dong Yunhu, "The Communist Party in Power in China VS Respect and Protection of Human Rights" in China's Human Rights in the New Century, edited by the China Society for Human Rights Studies, published by the Unification Press in 2005, P2.

6. Han Peide, Theories on and Practice of Human Rights published by Wuhan University Press in 1995, PP. 72-73.

7. These figures are cited from page 363-364 and 410-411 of Imperial Hegemony VS Balkan Power Keg by Hao Shiyuan, published by the Social Science Academic Press and the June 1st Reference News Newspaper, 1999.

8. From "Critique of the Gotha Programme" by Karl Marx, page 22 of Volume 2 of Marx and Engels Literary Selections, published by the Foreign Languages Press in 1955.

9. From "Convention on Protecting and Promoting the Diversity of Cultural Expressions," website: http://www.chinaculture.org.

10. From "Convention on Protecting and Promoting the Diversity of Cultural Expressions" website: http://www.chinaculture.org.