from Daniel Bell, Beyond

Liberal Democracy:
Political Thinking for an Human Rights and "Values in Asia":
East Asian Context,
3
r ncial and
'^L-.nr.

::i:;;-;;;;
:?,lt;;h;;.
religious
rWharever
conflict;Confucianvaluespromoteeconomic
rhemerits of these claims. they
;";, be answeredbv social scientists'not bv moral
in. o"ry way to evaluaretheseclaimsis by means
iori.utandsociol,ogical
analysis'
are

.^.:.,^.-,.1
ultimntely

k., .^ncirler,
devel-
enrpiri-

of his-

on East-WestDialogues
Princeton, NJ: Princeton Reflections O f c o u r s e , p o t r t r c a l a c t o r s t e n d t o b e m o t i v a t e d b y c o nAsian
fair to blameelderly
sideratlolls
^ri., ittun ciearthinking, anclit may not be
University Press, 2006. for the obfuslatingdiscourseon Asianvalues.2 The interest-
::il;;;
is that the debate attracted so much global atten-
#';;;,.-;"*ever,
the presence of somethingbesides obfuscationand self-
lN rUE EARLy1990s the economic and social achievementsof moderniz- :i:":;;*;t;ing
::;;;ffi- SeieralEast and SoutheastAsian societiesdid modernize
ing East Asian statesbecame too conspicuousto ignore. Senior Asian valuessomewhatat
stitesmen such as Lee Kr.ranYew and Dr. Mahathir trumpeted their high I"j.'f.ir, *ntle seemingto build upon traditional
w.rr.rrl libJral to human rights. Fortunately,the
GNps on the world stage, arguing that the "Asian miracle" rested on ffi;;th "pp.ou.h.t in East
of criticalintellectuals
distinctive"Asian values."The point was to cast doubt on the normative []l prur*ed but more n;ancedviews
underlyingthe debate.Over
superiority of
'Western-style
hurnan rights and to question the desirabil- Iri"'t.tp ro make senseof the key issues
participatein.several East-ryest
ity of exporcingthat model to East Asian societies.If Asianscan do u'ell ifr.lrr, i.."d., I havebeenfortunateto
the subject of human rights, and this chapter constitutes
with their own moral values and conceptionsof political organizatron, ii"frg".t on
iri-rJn..ti""s on theie dialogues'3 My aim is to get beyondthe rhetoric
then why should defenders6f western-stylehuman rights seekto imp6se and identifyrelativelypersua-
their ideason the rest of the world?
it'arn", doggedthe humanrightsdebate 'Western
approaches to human
The Asian valuesdebate,unfortunately, generatedmore heat than light.
,iu. E"rt Aiian criticismsof traditional
rights.
In retrospect,the substantiveproblem seemsobvious: the debatewas nel-
ther about Asia nor about values. Asia is a huge ar.rdexceptionally drverse 2 Lee Kuan Yew, to be fair, has backed ,rway frorn the term "Asian values," arguing that
landmass,encompassing much of the world's population. It hosts a num- countries with a confuciarr herirage'
he was referring only to values shared by East Asian
ber of religions,suchas Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism,Tao- 3In the mid-1990s the -arnegie Council .. Ethics and Intern.ltio'al Affairs convened
ism, christianity, and Judaism, as well as a myriad of races,ethnicities, severalworkshops inv.lving diallgues between East Asian
and !ilestern intellectuals on the
was planned and adn-Inistered
.rrrro-r, and languages.The assumption that Asia has its own cultr,rral subjecto{ human rights ,,, i"rt AJi"n societies.The project
Workshops were held in
jo"nn. studies at the Carnegie Council'
essencefundamcniallydifferent from rhar of the West is. to say the le:rst. by R. Bauer, director of
a final wrapup s-essron at
iron- fi"lon. (Japan), Bangkok (Thailand), and Seoul (Korea)' rvith
dubious. In fact, as Tatsuo Inoue has argued, the Asian values thesis the Harvard Law Sch.rl. Niy ,efl".tions on the Hrkone workshop appeared as the article
ro'Western intellectualimperialism, that is, "Orien- vol. 18, no. 3,
ically owes its roots ,.The
East Asian challeng. to Hulnr.r Rights," Human Rights Quarterly,
of the rrticle "Nli-
talism," the very force that was being criticized by official Asian critics (August 7996), artdn.ty r"h".ti."t' on the Bangkok workshop appeared as
(Summer. 1996). I have
human rights.t noriy Rights: on the Importance of Local Knowledge," Dlssazr
a book that is the product of this multiyear project'
There l.e no distinctly Asian values, and anything that goes by the also coedited (with Joanne R. Bauer)
The East Asian Challettge for Humart Rig/,lrs'Chapter l of my book Easr hleets West:Hu-
nanle of "Asian values" tends to refer to valuesthat are either narrower man Rigbtsant| Democracy in East Asia (Pri'-,c"t.,n' Princeton University Press,2000) also
(distinctiveonly to somesocieties,or parts of societies,in Asia) or broa.ler dr"*, o'r-,the findings c,f this project. Over the past several years, I have also participated tn
of Asia) than the stated a multiyear, cross-cultural dialogu" on Confucianismconvened by Hahm Chaibong
then of
ithe valuescharacterizesocietiesboth in and out rights (among
terms of reference. More surprisingly, perhaps,most clainrsmade on be- Yonsei University and UNESC[) that ha. dealt with the topic of human

about values! Consider some clairns other topics). I have coetlited nvo books that resulted from this proiect, con.fucianism for
half of Asian values were not even .World, University
Asian values:po- the Moiern co-edited rvith Hahm Chaibong (New York: Cambridge
typically put forward by politicians under rhe rubric of
P r e s s , 2 0 0 3 ) ,a n d T b e P o l i t i c s c t f A i f e c t i u e R e l a t i o r t s : E a s t A s i a a n d B e y o n , l , c o - e d i t e d w i t h
litical ,igitts conflict with economic development; free speech leads tcr draws on all these
Hahm Chaihark ll-anham, MD: Lexington Books' 2004)' This chapter
sourcesandsomeunpublishedargumentsmadebyEastAsianpartlclpantsattneseworK-
confined t<l
shops. My o*r, qrralifi."ti.rns ani"l"burarions of rhese argumettts are largel,v
r T a t s u o I n o u e , " L i b e r a l D e m o c r a c y a n d A s i a n O r i e n t a l i s n - r , "i n T h e E a s t A s i a n C h a l ' examples
the footnotes and the concluding section. I have also updated the argllments and
(New York: Cambridgc
l e t r g ef r : r H u m a n R i g h t s , e d .j o a n n e R . B a u e r a n d l ) a n i e l A ' B e l l by drawing on other sources.
1
U n i v e r s i t vP r e s s , 9 9 9 ) .
54 HUMAN RIGHTS ..VALUF.S
TN ASIA" 55
HUMAN RI(;HTS AND

One can distinguish between four sorts of argumentsput forward by of the political status quo, there is a strong
both defendersand critics
East Asian critics of NTesternapproachesto human rights (I do not mean in favclr of respect for those values'
t.,resumptio.t
to imply that theseargumentsare distinctly or uniquely Asian). First, the The fou.rh challengeis the argument that the current "international"
argument often assertedby East Asian governmentsthat a right must be needs to be modified to incorporate East Asian
hurnan rights regime
temporarily curtailed in order to deal with an unfortunate set of particu- that the current rights regime
ui.wpoi.ttr. East Asian critics have argued
lar social and political circumstances.Once the perceivedcrisis is over, \Testern liberal-democratic norms,
has be..t forged largely on the basis of
positively to the evolu-
according to this vieq then the rights denial is no longer ;ustified.This andthat.the people of East Asia can contribute
viewpoint is not in the first instancea "cultural clash" over human rights, tion of a truly international human rights discourse in which they had
as both the governmentin questionand the human rights activist sharea not heretoforeplayed a substantialpart. The point here is not to displace
common set of moral and political aspirationsas an end goal. Howeveq human rights in favor of some other set of principles,sbut rather to al-
cultural factors can affect the prioritizing of rights, which matters when low for the possibility of learning from values in Asia so that the human
rights conflict and it must be decidedwhich one to sacrifice. rights regime reflects the outcome of an international dialogue between
The other challengesto V/estern liberal conceptions of human rights peoplesof different cultures. The section ends with my own doubts re-
are more directly disputes over cultural values. Supportersof universal g a r d i n gt h e f e a s i b i l i t yo f s u c ha p r o i e c t .
human rights tried to discredit the Asian values discourseby pointing ro
the diversity of valueswithin the Asian region, but such argumentsalso
unCerminedtheir own position. As Randall Peerenboomargues,"if such TnADE-OFFS AND PRIORITIES
diversity precludesthe common values within the Asian region, then it
Rights t)ersusDeuelopment: A Zero-Swm Game?
also precludesa fortiori the possibility of uniuersal udlues."aHence, I
will use the term "values in Asia," which is sensitiveto the pluralism of A common East Asian argument is that Western-stylecivil and political
values within Asia yet retains the implication that such values can pose libertiesneed to be sacrificedin order to meet more basic material needs.
challengesto rWesternliberal approachesto human rights. Most famously, Lee Kuan Yew argues that political leaders in developing
The secondchallenge is an argument over the justificatioa of rights. As countries should be committed to the eradication of poverty above all
'Western
against the claim that the liberal tradition is the only possible else:"As prime minister of Singapore, my first task was to lift my coun-
moral foundation for human rights, many East Asian human rights ac- try out of the degradation that poverty, ignorance and disease had
tivists argue that their own cultural traditions can provide the resources wrought. Since it was dire poverty that made for such a low priority
for local justificationsof ideasand practicesnormally realizedthrough a given to human life, all other things became secondary."5If factional op-
'Western position threatens to slow down the government's efforts to promote
human rights regime in countries. This argument is not merely
theoretical, it also has strategic importance for advocatesof human rights economic development or to plunge the country into civil strife, then rn
reforms in East Asia. Lee'sview tough measurescan and should be taken to ensure political
The third challengeis an argument for moral pluralism. That is, cul- stability. Such is the messageLee delivers to receptiveaudiencesin China,
tural particularities in East Asia may justify a different moral standpoint Japan, Vietnam, and the Philippines.T
vis-i-vis the human rights regime typically endorsed by \Testern govern- Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen, however, casts doubt
ments, scholars,and human rights activists.To repeat,the East Asian re- on the validity of this proposition.s He argues that there is little empiri-
gion is a complex mix of societies,cultural traditions, and political vrew-
points. It is also true that values change significantly over time rn 5 See Anthony
J. Langlois, The Politics of Justice and Human Rights: Southed.stAsid
responseto various internal and external pressures,and this is evidentln and Uniuersalist Theory (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,2001).
6 Nathan
the region. However, some values in Asia may be more persistent than Gardels, "Interview with Lee Kuan Yew," New PerspectiuesQuarterly, vol.9,
n o . 1 ( . W i n t e r1 9 9 2 ) .
others and may divergefrom some human rights ideasand practicestyp- 7 The idea
. that the government's first obligation is to secure the means of subsrstence
ically endorsedin Westerncountries.If thesevaluesare widely sharedby has Confucian .oor, has been influential throuehout East Asian societieswith a Con-
f u c i a n h e r i r a g e :s e ec h"n-d
a p r e r9 .
8 Unless
a Randall Peerenboom,"Show Me the Money-the Dominance of Vealth ir.rDetermining otherwise specified,the examples from this section were provided by East Asian
partrcipants at the workshop held in Hakone,.fapan, in
R i g h t s P e r f o r m a n c ei n A s i a , " D u k e l n t e r n a t i o n a lL a w J o u r n a l , v o l . 1 5 , n o . I ( 2 0 0 5 ) , 1 3 1 . June 1995 (seer-rote3).
56 HUMAN RIGHTS HUMAN RIGHTS AND "VALUESIN ASIA' 57

cal evidencethat civil and political rights lead to disastrousoutcomes. sarne right in the long term. Xin Chunying, a lawyer working at the Hu-
Systematiccross-nationalstatisticalstudiesdo not support the claim that man Rights Center of the Chinese Academy of the Social Sciences,notes
there is a correlation or a causal connection between authoritarianrsm that East Asian governments emphasize "the particularity of human
and economic success.Civil and political rights in fact help to safeguard rights protection and the priority determined by the specific conditions
economic security in the sensethat such rights draw attention to maior oi each country."11 Such claims are put forward by government officials
social disastersand induce an appropriate political response: but often attract significant local support.
'Whether Consider the following examples of situation-specific iustifications for
and how a governmentrespondsto needsand sufferingsmay well
the temporary curtailment of particular rights:12
dependon how much pressureis put on it, and the exerciseof political
rights(suchasvoting,criticizing,protesting,
and so on) canmakea realdif- 1. Kevin Tan, then professor of constitutional law at the National Uni-
ference.For example,one of the remarkablefacts about faminesin the versity of Singapore, noted that Singapore in the 1960s was plagued by
world is that no substantial
faminehaseveroccurredin any countrywith a "the threat of a communist takeover,and communal and ethnic divisions,
democraticform of governmentand a relativelyfreepress.e which pitted Singapore'smajority Chinese population against the minority
Malays."t: Tan noted that Singaporemade use of emergencypowers (origi-
Similar to Lee Kuan Yew, the Burmesemilitary junta argues that rights
nally establishedby British colonial rulers) to counter thesethreats when it
must be curtailed in order to provide the political stability said to under-
was expelled from Malaysia in 1965. The Singapore government argued
pin economic progress.At least some freedoms,however,need to be re-
. that without these powers, including the authority to detain without trial
stored to allow for economic growth. In the words of Yozo Yokota, then
persons suspectedof being subversives,it may not have been able to pre-
UN SpecialRapporteur on Human Rights in Burma: "If the government
vent the country from plunging into civil strife.la
allows economiststo freely engagein researchand to make necessary 2. The Malaysian government sometimesdeprives indigenous popula-
recommendations to improve the economic situation of the country, and
tions of accessto forests and waters, thus restricting their right to a secure
if the people are allowed to do businessfreely by traveling without gov- cultural context. The Malaysian government asserts that control of such
ernment restrictionsand collecting information and conducting negotia- natural resourcesis necessaryfor economic development in that country.
tions as they like, there is a great chance that the country would grow 3. When Korean PresidentPark issued a threat to execute blackmailers. a
rapidly." 1o capital outflow that was hemorrhaging the country's economy ceased.
The current status of Burma and North Korea-desperately poor coun- '!Var
4. Post-\forld II land reform in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan
tries governed by the region's most repressiverulers-supports Yokota's would have been much more difficult to accomplish without a U.S. occupy-
doubts. ing force. If instead there had been a democratic context in each country,
the political process may have been captured by landed interests that would
The Need fctr Specificity have posed serious obstaclesto land reform.

While the generalclaim that civil and political rights must be sacrificed
1tXin Chunying,"EastAsian
in the name of economic developmentmay not stand up to social scien- Viewsof Human Rights,"paperpresentedat the Hakone
workshop(on file with author),9.
tific scrutiny, East Asian governments also present narrower justifica- 12EastAsianparticipants
at the Hakoneworkshopgavetheseexamplesbut did not nec-
tions for curbing particular rights in particular contexts for particular essarilyendorsethem. They were raisedas examplesof justificationsthat cannotbe re-
economic or political purposes.These actions are said to be taken as a buttedwithout the acquisitionof localknowledge.
13KevinTan, "Economic
short-term measure to secure a more important right or more of that Developmenr, LegalReform,and Rightsin Singapore and Tai-
wan," in The EastAsian Challenge Human Rlgbrs,ed.
fctr JoanneR. Bauerand DanielA.
Bell(New York: CambridgeUniversityPress,1999),266.
e Amartya Sen, "Human Rights and Economic Achievements," nTbe I''astAsian Chal- ra Needless
to say,it is difficultto provethat suchpowerswerenecessary to preventcivil
Ienge fctr Human Rights, ed. Joanne R. Bauer and l)aniel A. Bell (New York: Carnbriclge strlfebecausethe alternativescenariois counterfactual.Experience
from other contexts,
U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s ,1 9 9 9 ) , 9 2 . l f t h e p r o b l e m i s s e v e r em a l n u t r i t i o n , h o w e v e r ,t h e r e c o r d i ' nowever'doessuggest that civil libertiescancontributeto communalstrifeif left unchecked:
n o t s o c l e a r : s i n c eD e n g ' sr e f o r m s , a u t o c r a t i cC h i n a h a s a b e t t e r r e c o r d i n t h i s r e s p e c tt h ' l t r the freedomof the pressin Rwanda,for
example,allowedHutu demagogues to whip up
d e m o c r i r t i cI n d i a . natredagainstthe Tutsiminorityand thusprovidedideological
r 0Y r z o Y o k o t a , " E c o n o m i c D e v e l o p m e n t i r n d H u m a n R i g h t s P r : r c t i c e , i 'p a p e r p r c -
justificationfor the 1994
genocide.SeeChua, Worldon Fire,168-70.
s e n r e da t t h e H a k o n e w o r k s h o p ( o n f i l e w i t h t r u t h o r ) , 3 .
58 HUMAN RIGHTS HUMAN RICiHTSAND "VALUESIN ASIA" 59

5. The constitutionalright to own property and trt receivefair compensa- w h y a r i g h t s v i o l a t i o n( t h e r i g h t r o d e t a i n

r e s o u r c e sa)n d a n : l c c o L l not f
tion for stateacquisitionof such property was deliberatelvleft out of Singa-
;;;", t r i a l . a 1 6 r e r r rr o e x e c u r e b l a c k m , r i l e r s t, o r p r o v i d i n g i n t e r -
pore's postindependence consritution becauseit conflictedwith the irlpera-
;;;;; for the hearing impaired) is the only effective way of. clealing
tives of economic development. According to Kevin Tan, the "overall To counter such argumentswith the clair-n
irnf, ifrrr parricular problem.l8
national interest,rvhich required that vast tr'.lctsof land be reclaimed and
;;;;;ri."unrries do not have to face similar problems or that not all
developedfor industrial use, was given priority ir.rthe passageof the Land for purposesof economic developmentseerls
,jnirrt n..a to be curtailed
Acquisition Act. Tivo key objectiveswere securedthrough the powers ac-
besidethe Point'
corded under this act, since it allowed the government to acquire land for "Asian" challengewith the
Nor is rt appropnate to respond to this
both industrial developmentand public housing."ts and hencecannot be restricted un-
claim that human rights are universal
6. The existenceof underpaid labor, denied the right to protest,r6has at- Asian side of the debateoften con-
i, ^ny circumstances.The so-called
tracted much internationirl investment in China's coastal regions, leading that ideally governments
..d., ,h", human rigl-rtsare universal ancl
to high growth ratesand increasingopportunities for enrichment.As inter- The point being made
ought to try ro secureas many rights as possible.re
national enterprises along the coast become incleasingly capital- and and that consequentl,v
i.i., to**er, is rhar cerrain rights ma,vconf-lict,
safe-
technology'-intensive,foreign firms requirir-rgcheaper labor move inlancl.
gou.tn-.n6 may have to either sacrificesome rights in order to
There is an argument that the whole processhas il spillover effect that, rn ones or sacrifice :1certain right in the short ternl
!.r"rd -ot. important
the end, may benefit much of the country.
i"r,o.de, to secure more of that same right in the long term. Put differ-
about
7. Although meaningful political participation for people with hearing
ently, the real East Asian challenge is often not so much a dispute
disabilitiesrequiresstate subsidiesfor the use of sign-languageinrerprerers the ideal of promoting human rights or different cultural "essences" as a
in public forums when political leadersaddresscitizens in an official ca- plea for recognitiorl of the (alleged) fact that certain East Asian govern-
pacity, and the use of ir.rterpreters
for the hearing disabledto make their -..rt, oft..t find thernselvesin the unenviable position of having to cur-
own views known to political officials, as well as the use of subtitleswhen
political candidates speak on television, poor countries such as Chine, 1 8I t i s w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t z r r r i c l e ' {o f t h e U n i t e d N a t i o n s I n t e r n a t i o u a lC o v e n a n to n C . i v i l
Vietnam, and the Philippines sirnpll' cannot afford to provide such ser- and political Rights 1I 966) explicitly allou's for short-term curbs on rights if these are trcc-
vices.lT essaryto deal with particular social crises:

Whatever one thinks about these justifications for rights violations, ir
is important to note that they are not offered as general arguments for
repression and hence cannot be refuted by social scientific evidence
based on generalizations. What makes these arguments for human
rights violations plausible is that they include a description of a pressing
social problem (communal strife, capital ourfloq lack of economic
ri Tan,"EconomicDevelopr.r.rent," 268.
r^Whilethecentral doesoppose,at leastrhetorically,thiskind of maltreat-
laovernment
mentof labor,DorothvSolingerpointsout that its own economicpolicies(decentralizing
profit retentionto loc;rlgovcrnments and allowingtax receiptson localindustryto be col-
lectedand kept locally)havedisposed localleadersto solicitrightsabusinginvestors.As
Solingerobserves,"the problernis pretty compler-it's not iust a questionof 'the state'
ar.rdits approachto rights. . . the variousechelonsof the statemay haveseparateinterests
and differentreasonsfor their stanceson rights." Letter from Dorothy Solingerto Dar.riel
Bell(23 September 1995)(on filewith author).
r7The exan.rple of humanrighrsviolationsagainstpeoplewitlr heanngdisabilitics w:rs
providedby Akihiko Yonail,rrna in a publicforum on "The (irorvtl.rof ErrstAsia ancllts
hnpircton Human Rights,"held irr the UnitedNationsUniversitiin T<rky'o, June 1995,
follorvingthe Hrrkonelr,orkshop.
In time of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the existence
of which isofficially proclaimecl, the StatesParties to the present covenant may t.rkc
measuresderogatilg from their obligations under the present Covenant to the extent
strictly required bv the exigenciesof the situation, provided that such measures are
not inconsistent with their other obligations under internatior-rallaw and do not in-
volve discrimir.rationsolely on the ground 6f race, color, sex, language, religion or so-
cial origin.
1 eF o r e x a m p l e ,a r t i c l e 8 o i t h e B a n g k o k D e c l a r a t i o n a d o p t e d b v s e v e r a lA s i a n s t e t e si n
A p r i l l 9 9 3 r t a t . , t h " t " r v h i l e h u r n , r nr i g h t r l r c u n i r e r s , r il r t l l i l t u r c .r h t v m u t t h e c ' r n t i d -
e r e d i n t h e c o n t e x r o f a d y n a m i c a n d e v o l v i n g p r o c e s so f i n t e r n a t i o n a ln o r m - s e t t i n 8 ,[.3 n d ]
bearing in rnind the significanceof national and regior.ralparticularities and various histor-
ical, cultural and religious backgrounds." Michael V. Dowdle argues that this fornrrrlatiot.t
is wholly consistent with the conception of rights as principles (rather than hard conr-
mands) defended b_vJohn Rawls and Ronald Dworkin in the context of Anglo-Anreric.rrr
iurisprudence. Dowdle, "How a Liberal Jurist Defends the Bangkok Declaration," in Ne-
Sotinting Culture and Human Rigbts," ed. Lynda S. Bell, Andrew J. Nathan, and IIan Peleg
(New York: Columbie LTniversityPress,2001), 125-52. The challenge to the universaliza-
tion of human riehts is rnclreexplicit in the case of Islam, however: the Cairo Islarnic con-
f e r e n c ei n A . r g u . t t 9 e - : c o n t r a s t e dI s l a m i c v a l u e s w i t h t h e U N D e c l a r a t i o n .J o s e R u b i o -
Carracedo, "Clobalization and Differentiality in Human Rights," in Beyond NationaLism:
Souereigntyand Citi;enship, ed. Fred Dallmayr and Jose N{. Rosrles (Lanham' MD: Lex-
tngton Books, 2001), 277.
60 HUMAN RIC;HTS HUNIAN RIGHTS AND "VALUES IN ASIA' 61

tail certain rights in order to secureother nrore basic rights.r0T<rparrl- This leads us once again to the
denial of rights is no longer iustified.2a
phraseIsaiah Berlin, not alI good rights go rogether,contrary to the optl- point that the Asian v-:1lues debate is something of a misnomer. Somegov-
mistic and well-meaningpronouncementsof some'Westernhuman rights arguments for curtailing righrs turn mainly on the validity of
i*..",
activists. o n c t l l t u r e .T h e s e a r g u m e n t sa r e s o l ) ' l e t i m etsl s e dt o
i m p i r i . r l f a c t s .n o t
When countering plausible government justificationsfor rights viola- rights in such a way that the traditional cultural values
,utit"t curtailing
tions of this sort, one can question either the premisethat the East Asian As Amartya Sen observed, the Chinese government
are actulallyviolated.
country under question is facing a particular social crisis (for example,:r policy by claiming (erroneousln in Sen's view) that
iustifiesits one-child
high risk of intercommunal warfare) requiring imn-rediatepolitical ac- it i, n...tr"ry to deal with the population crisis. In fact, the resulting
tion or the idea that curbing a particular right is the best meansof over- policy violates, not honors, a deeply held cultural preference for siring
'Sfharever
coming that crisis.zr the tactic, the social critic must be arnred hale children.z't
with detailed and historically informed knowledge of the society that Nonetheless,the argument is not purely a matter of how best to stamp
finds itself in a specific,historically contingent condition.22 out undesirablecultural values.Traditional valuescan be widely adhered
Even if it turns out that (1) the socialcrisisis real and (2) curbing to and considereddefensibleby membersof a particular community, and
rights is the most effectivervay of overcoming it, such local justificatrons this can affect the prioritizing 9f rights. Different societies may rank
for the denial of rights are, as Jack Donnelll. pur it, "at best a short-run rights differently, and if they face a similar set of disagreeablecircum-
excuse."23Or-rcethe economic or political troubles are more or lesssuc- stancesthey may come to a different conclusion about the right that
cessfullyovercome,then, according to the government'sown logic, the needsto be curtailed. For example,U.S. citizensmay be more willing ro
sacrifice a social or economic right in casesof conflict with a civil and
r t ) T h e U . S . g o v e r n m e n t ' sr e a c t i o n t o t h e S e p t e m b e r 1 1 , 2 0 0 1 , t e r r o r i s t a r r a c k s s h o r v s
political right: if neither the constitution nor a majority of democratically
t h a t s u c h a r g u n l e n t s: r r en o t d i s t i n c t l y A s i a n . A s R a n d y P e e r e n b o o mp u t s i t , " W h e n s t r t b l e ,
electedrepresentativessupport universal accessto health care, then the
Euro-America can afford to preach to developing countries struggling with terrorists about
the value of civil and politicalrights and the importanccof the rule of law. But when faced
right to health care regardlessof income can be curtailed. In contrast,
w r t h t h r e a t s , n r u c h c h e r i s h e dr i g h t s g o o r : t t h e r v i n d o r v . I f t h e r e i s a n v t h i n g u n i v e r s a l , i t the Chinesemay be more willing to sacrificea civil or political liberty in
would seem to be disregard for rights whenever there are real or perceived rhreats to sr,rbil- casesof conflict with a social or economic right: there may be wide sup-
i t y o r o r d e r " ( P e e r e n b o o m ", H u m a n R i g h t s a n d R u l e o f L a w : S f h a t ' st h e R e l a t i o n s h i p ? " , port for restrictions on the right to form free labor associations if they
( ) e o r g e t o w n. l o u r n a l o f I n t e r n a t i o n d l L a w , v o l . 3 6 , n o . 3 ( 2 0 0 5 ) , 9 3 5 . T h e S e p t e m b e r11
are necessaryto provide conditions for economic development.26Differ-
t e r r o r i s t a t t . r c k sh a v e a l s o i e d t o r e t h i n k i n g i n s o m e h u r r i a nr i g h t s c i r c l e sr e g i r r d i n gr h c p o s -
ent priorities assignedto rights can also matter when it comes to decid-
s i b i l i t y t h a t s o c i a lc r i s e sm a y j u s t i f y t h e t e m p o r a r y c u r r a i l m e n ro f r i g h t s : s e e ,e . g . , $ T r l l i a r n
F. Schulz (executive director of Amnesty International U.S.A.), "Security Is a Human Right,
ing how to spend scarceresources.For example, East Asian societies
Too: Have Rights Advocates F'ailedto Face LIp to Terrorism?", Tbe New York Times NI,tg' with a Confucian heritage will place great emphasisupon the value of
azine, 18 April 2004, 20. education,which may help to explain the large amount of spendingon
2 1O f c o u r s e ,h u m a n r i g h t s g r o u p s a n d N G O s a r e l i k e l y t o l o o k h a r d e r f o r f e a s i b l ea l t c r -
2aNote, however, that the "short term" can last a long time, particularly if the social cri-
n a t i v e st o r i g l r t s v i o l a t i o n s t h a n g o v e r n m e n t o f f i c i a l s ,b r r t i f t h e y l o o k a n d f i n d n o t h i n g , i t
m a y b e t i m e t o m o v e o n t o s o m e t h i n ge l s e . sis is replaced by rrnother that similarl,vjustifies rhe rights curtailment. (For exanrple, in the
I T h e s o c i a l c r i t i c , i n o t h e r w o r d s , m u s t 6 r s t c o n c e d et h e p o s s i b i l i t yo f s i t u a t i o n a lc o n - late 1990s, pressure was building on Sir.rgaporeand Mal,rysia to repeal internal securirv
straints on the part of the power holder and then proceed to show (on the basis of l c.rtt- acts that allowed indefinite detention without trial becausethe initial justification, viz., fear
of communist takeover, was no longer plausible, but the September 1 1 terrorist attacks,
t e x t u i r l a r g u r ) r e n t )t h a r t h o s e c o n s t r a i n t s , d o n o t a p p l y i n t h a t p i r r t i c u l a r s i t u a t i o n . S o c i a l
along with the concornirant fear of terrorisr attacks by Islanric "fundamentalists" in South-
c r i t i c s i n E : r s tA s i a m a y b e b e t t e r c u l t u r a l l l ' p r e p a r e d t o e n g a g er n t h i s s o r t o f c o n r . r t u . t l
eastAsia, put an end to that debate.) Moreover, if the main reason for rights cur-tailmentis
criticism. In experimental settings, accordir.rgto Richard Nisbett, "Americans in gcner.rl
insufficient economic resources (e.g., few countries can afford to subsidize sign-language
f a i l e d t o r e c o g n i z et h e r o l e o f s i t u a t i o n a lc o n s t r a i n t so n a s p e a k e r ' sb e h a v i o rw h e r e a sK o r e -
interpreters in all political f,,rr*, so that people with hearing disabilities are guaranteed
a n s w e r e a b f e t o . " N i s b e t t , T h e G e o g r a p h y c t i T h o u g h t , 1 9 0 . F o r w l r a t e v e rc o n c a t e n ; t i o n
equal rights to meaningful political participation), ther.r the "short-term" restriction on
o f h i s t o r i c a l r e a s o n s t, h e r e m a y b e p e r c e p t u , ral n d c o g n i t i v e p r o c e s s e tsh a t r . n a k eA m e r i ! r l l \
rtghts will not "wither away" in the foreseeablefuture.
t y p i c a l l y t h i n k i n " b l a c k a n d w h i t e " t e r m s ( p e r h a p s h e l p i n g t o e x p l a i n t h e r e a d i n e s st o 2tSen,
c o n d e m n " f o r e i g n " p r a c t i c e sw i t h o u t a n y u n d e r s t a n d i n go f d i f f e r e n t c u l t u r e si r s w e l l l r t h c comment rt Hakonc workrhop.
2 6T o r e p e a t ,
p o p u l a r i t y o f s u c h L ] . S .p r e s i d e n t sa s R o n : r l d R e a g a ni r n d C e o r g e I ( ' . B u s h ) . I d o n o t m e a u t o i m p l v i h a t s u c h h c l i e f sj u s t r f v i n gc o n s t r a i r . l tos n c i v i l a n c l
political rights are necessarilydistinctive to the East Asian region. What I do rnean to arguc
r l . f a c k D o n n e l l y , " H u m a n R i g h t s a n d A s i a n V a l u e s :A D e f e n s eo f ' l W e s t e r n ' U n i v c r s i r l -
ts that they will seem more plrrusibleto a wider array of constituents compared to people iu
ism," irr The F.ast Asian Ohallenge for Human R4q.brs,ed. Joanne R. Bauer and Dantel A
W e s t e r nl i h e r a l d c m o c r a t i c e o u u t r r r s .
B e l l ( N e w Y o r k : C a m b r i r l g eU n i v c r s i t y P r e s s ,1 9 9 9 ) , 7 2 .
62 I{UMAN RI(;I{TS HUMAN RIGHTSAND "VALUESIN ASIA" 63

or so, every slncethe

education compared to other societieswith similar levels of economic site of a rich discourseon rights for the last century
Note, however, that these choices are not meant to be translated into the Chinese tetm quanli'Le
development.zT ierm "rights" began to be
celebrated;they reflectthe difficult circumstancesthat may bind political intellectuals argued that values similar to
Mor.ou*, several East Asian
actors in the short to medium term. ,.n..r, of Western conceptions of human rights can also be found in
In short, these arguments for curtailing rights do not undermine the ..pr.-odern" non-\Testern traditions. For example, the distin-
,oa.
quest for a truly universalhuman rights regime: Cultural arguments for Madjid notes that "Islam too recog-
suished-Islamicscholar Nurcholish
the systematic denial of basic civil and political rights, as well as eco- iir., th. right to found a family, the right to privacy, the right to freedom
nomic, social,and cultural rights, cannot withstand critical scrutiny,even of ,oou.-..tt and residence, the right to use one's own language,the right
allowing for justifiablemoral and political differencesand for plausible to practice one's own culture and the right to freedom of religion."30The
accounts of situation-specificcurtailment of particular rights. At best, University of Hong Kong political philosopher Joseph Chan argues that
tWestern of human rights can also
different cultural values can justify different priorities given to rights in valuessimilar to aspects of conceptions
casesof conflict, but both "sides" can agreethat such hard choices are be found in the Confucian tradition.3l The notion of ren (variously trans-
unfortunate and hopefully temporary. lated as benevolence, humanity, or love), for example, expressesthe value
The other challengesto \Testern ideas of human rights are more di- of impartial concern to relieve human suffering. In Mencius's famous ex-
rectly arguments over cultural values. Several East Asian intellectuals ample of a child on the verge of falling into a well, a person with ren
have argued that'Western-stylehuman rights discourseand instruments *onld be moved by compassion to save the child, not because he or she
have not yet adequately incorporated "values in Asia." The prclposed had personal acquaintance with the child's parents, nor because he or she
remediesdraw on the positive-potential and realized-contributions of wanted to win the praise of fellow villagers or friends, but simply because
East Asian cultural traditions. of his or her concern for the suffering of a human person. Such concern
shows that Confucianism allows for duties or rights that belong to hu-
AsreN JusrrrIceuoNs FoR HuueN Rtcsrs man personssimpliciter, independent of their roles.12
In addition, the functional equivalents of some human rrghts prdctices
Hwman Rights: Is Liberalism the Only Moral Foundation? can be found in Asian traditions. For example, the idea of curbing the
ruler's exercise of arbitrary state power figured prominently in Confu-
According to the prominent human rights theorist Jack Donnelly, "the
idea that all human beings,simply becausethey are human, have certain
2eSeeStephenC. Angle, Human Rights and Chinese Thought: A Cross-Cultural Inquiry
inalienable political rights" was essentiallyforeign to traditional Asian
'Westernpolitical thought.2t (New York: Cambridge University Press,2002), and Marina Svensson'Debating Human
political thought as well as to premodern Rights in China: A Conceptual and Political Histttry (Lanham, MI): Rowmar.r and Little-
The theory of human rights was first fully developed in John Locke's field,2002). Angle and Svenssonhave coedited and translated The Chinese Human Rights
SecondTreatiseon Gouernment.Theseideas spread broadly in response Reader (Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 2002), which includes many of the key Chinese-
to the dual threats to human dignity posed by modern centralizedstates languagedocuments and essayson human rights.
30Nurcholish Madjid, "Islam, Modernization and Human Rights: A Preliminary Eram-
and socially disruptive free markets in seventeenth-centuryEurope. ination ofthe Indonesian Case," paper presented at the Hakone workshop (on file with au-
The claim that the concept of human rights is foreign to East Aslan thor) (quoting Chandra Muzaffar), 7. Since the downfall of Suharto, Nurcholish Madiid
political traditions may be out of date: China, for example, has been the has played an important role in aiding the transition to democratic rule, and his views have
been respectedpartly, if not mainly, becausehe appeals to Islamic foundations and is per-
2r China is an exception within the East Asian region. As the official newspaper CDina s o n a l l yr e s p e c t e df o r h i s r e l r g i o u : p i e t y .
31In the
Dally notes, "in the 1990s, China spent just 2 percent of its GDP on education, growing to same vein, Stephen Angle argues that the Chinese rights discourse owes rnuch
rwesternnations investedan averagc 6 to to neo-Confucian theories about leeitimate desires that date back to the sixteenth century.
more than 2.4 percent in 200.3.In 2003, developed
'{ l Angle's main argument is not thet th.r. i, ar-,exact convergelicebetween Western and Chi-
7 percent 6f their GDP in education, and even in third world countries the average was
neseviews on human rights, but rather that the Chinese background has shaped a distinc-
percent." "Experts Say Education Input Vital," China Daily, T August 2005 (wwwchina
ttvely Chinese discourse about rights. I have critically evaluated this argument in my re-
daily.com.cn/EnglislVdoc/2005-07/08/content 458397.htm, visited 7 January 2006). As China
In view of Angle's book, "Human Rights and Social Criticism in Contemporary Chinese
continues to recover its Confucian tradition, it is hoped that this percentagecan incre:sc'
P o l i t i c a tT h t r y , " P o l i t i c a l T h e c t r y , v o l .3 2 , n o . 3 ( J u n e 2 0 0 4 ) , 3 9 7 4 0 0 .
any case,social critics can appeal to the Cor.rfuciantradition to arllue for an increase.
12See
:s Donnelly, "Human Rights and Asiar.rValues," 62. Chan, "A Confucian Perspectiveon Human Rights," 218.
 HU]VIAN RTGHTS HUMAN RIGHTS ANI) *VALUES IN ASIA" 65

Jongryn Mo argr:esthat the Censorateprovided

cian political reginres.3r In short, the'Westernliberal tradition may not be the onl.vmoral foun-
an effective institutional restraint on the ruler's power in Choson dy- dation for realizing the values and practices associatedwith human
nasty Korea. The Censorateconsistedof three org2lnsthat were explic- rights regirnes.But why does this rnatter,practically speaking?
itly designedto preventabusein the exerciseof political and adminrstra-
tive agents.The censorswere not only judicial and auditing agents,but
lncreasing Commitment to Human Rigbts in East Asia:
also voicesof dissentand opposition, playing roles similar to that of op-
Strategic Con si derat rons
position partiesin modern democracies.'ra
There were alsofunctional equivalentsof some social and economic I(hile it may be possibleto defend the argument that human rights ideirs
rights. ClassicalConfuciansstrongly emphasizedthat the first obligation and practicesresonateto some extent with Asian cultural traditions, are
of government is to feed the people, and this norm was often put into there any particular reasonsfor proponents of human rights to adopt
practicein imperialChina. In the Songdynasty (960-1279 c.r.), the cen- culturally sensitivestrategiesfor the promotion of righrs, either instead
tral governmentestablisheda granary in each district for the storing of of, or as a complementto, other strategies?If the ultimate aim of human
rice that came from the public land as rent. Each of the four classes rights diplomacy is to persuadeothers of the value of human rights, ir is
of people was given rice and sometimesclothes. In the Qing dynasty more likely that the struggleto promote human rights can be won if it is
(1644-1971), there were strict legal sanctions to punish officials who fought in ways that build on, rather than challenge,local cultural tradi-
failed to securethe "right to food": "According to the Law Code of the tions.36To deny the possibility that human rights norms and practices
Tsing [Qing] Dynasty,if the officialsdo not support the four classes,the are compatible with Asian traditions translatesinto dependenceon a
very sick personand the infirm and superannuatedwho need public sup- foreign standardfor promoting human rights. This approach has a nunt-
port, they shall be punishedby sixty blows of the long stick."i5 ber of drawbacks.
r r I t i s r a t h e r s u r p n s i n gt h a t A l a s d a i r N l a c l n t l ' r e , k n o w n f o r h i s s u p p o s e dh o s t i i i t y t o First, the argument that \il/esternliberalism is the only moral founda-
'Sfestern-style tion for human rights unwittingly plays into the hands of nasty forcesin
rights discourse,has argued rhat modern states necessarilymust drarv on
t h a t d i s c o u l s ei n a w a v t h a t p r e c l u d e sC o n f u c i a n i s m :" m y v i e r v d o e s i n v o l v e a d e n i a l t h a r East Asia who seek to stigmatizehuman rights voices as "agents of for-
any modern state, Asilrn or lwestern, could embody the values of a Mencius or a Xunzj. eign devils" and defamersof indigenous traditions. Similarly, the argu-
T h e p o l i t i c a l d i m e n s i o n so f a C l o n f u c i i r r . r i stm
hat took eitheror both of them as its teachers ment that the developrnentof human rights is contingent on the devel-
would be those of the local cornmunity, not of the state." Maclrtyre, "Questions for Con-
opment of capitalism strengthensthe position of antimodernists who
f u c i a n s : R e f l e c t i o n so n t h e E s s a y si n C o m p a r a t i v eS t u d y o f S e l f ,A u t o n o m y , a n d C o m m u -
nity," in Coniutian Etltics:A Compitratiue Study of Self, Autoilomy, and Community, ed.
oppose human rights, while the argument that human rights is conrin-
K w o n g - l o i S h u n a n d D a v i d B . \ W o n g( N e w Y o r k : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t yP r e s s ,2 0 0 4 ) , 2 1 7 . Sent on anthropocentricargumentsstrengthensadvocatesof a theocen-
B n t i f s o m e a s p e c t so f C o n f u c i a n - i n s p i r e dp r a c t i c e sa n d i n s t i t n t i o n sc a n s e r v ea s f h e f u n . tric view who oppose human rights..r'Vorse, argunrentsthat present
tional equivalent of \Vestern-stylepractices and institutions that secure civil and political a stark choice between religion and human rights (as opposed ro an
r i g h t s , t h e n w h y t a k es u c ha h a r d l i n e a g a i n s t" p o l i t i c a l C o n f u c i i r n i s m " ?M a c l n t v r e u n d e r -
e s t i m a t e st h e p o t e n t i a lo f C o n f u c i a n - i n s p i r e dp o l i t i c a l i n s t i t u t i o n s ,j u s t a s h e o v e r e s t i r n : l t e s
t h e p o t e n t i a l o f C o n f u c i a ne t h i c s t o s t r u c t u r ee t h i c a l l i f e a t t h e l e v e l o f l o c a l c o m m u n i t v . 36The conception
of tradition refers to an ongoing argument about the good of the
F e l v c o n t e m p o r z r r ya d h e r e n t so f C o n f u c i a n i s m r e g a r d ( l o n f u c i a n i s m a s a " w e l l - d e 6 n e . l c o m m u n i t y l v h o s e i d e n t i t v i t s e e k st o d e f i n e .T h e c u l t u r a l t r t r d i t i o n so f i n r e r c s rr o h t r n r a n
concept of the kind of community within which relationships could be defined by the rele- rights activists, in other words, should be living in the sensethat fundamental values still
v a n t n o r n r s , a n c l t h e [ o u r v i r t r r e sw o u l d p r o v i d e t h e s t a n d a r d s f o r p r a c t i c e " ( i b i d . , 2 l - 5 ) ; h a v e t h e c a p a c i t yt o r r o t i v a t c a c t i o n i n t h e c o , r t e m p , , r . r r ye r a . F o r s j m i l a r a c c o u n t so f t r i r -
qrtlon, see Robert Bellah
r a t h e r ,C o n f u c i a n i s mi s v i e w e da s p a r t o f t h e g o o d l i f e , p a r t i c u l a r l y r e l e v a n tf o r s t r u c t u r i n g et al., Habits of the Heart (Berkelev: University of California
r e l a t i o n s h i p sw r t h e l d e r l vp a r e n t s ,b u t m o s t C o n f u c i a n sf r e e l y d r a w u p o n o f h e r e t h i c a l r c - P r e s s ,f 9 8 5 ) . l - - 2 8 . 1 3 5 - l o r a n d A l a ' J . r i r M a r l n t y r e , V / b u s r
Iustitr,?\l/hi'cb Ratr,,tnlirt?
s o u r c e ss u c h a s C h r i s t i a n i t ya n d B u d c l h i s mf o r s t r u c t u r i n ge, t h i c a l l i v e s . ( L o n d o n :D u c k w o r . r h ,| 9 t i 8 1 .
r a J o n g r v n M o , " T h e C h a l l e n g eo f A c c o u n t a b i l i t y : I m p l i c a t i o n s o f t h e C e n s o r a t e . " i t r 3 7 J o h nL . E s p o s i t o
. p o i n t s o u r t h a t " l t l o o o f t e n a n a l y s r si l n d p o l i c y m a k i n g h a v e b e e r . r
Oonfucianism for the llodern \Vorlr!. ed. Daniel A. Bell and Hahrn Chaibong (Nerv lbrk: shaped by a liberal secularism that tiils to reco*nize ir too reDrescnrsa ,"r,orldvicw. nor rhe
p a r a d i g m f o r m o d e r n s o c i e t y ,a n d
C a m b r i d g e U r . r i v e r s i tPr r e s s 2
, 003). c a n c a s i l y J . g . n " . " t " i n t o a ' s e c r r l a r i s tf u n d a m e r . r t a l i s m '
t h a t t r e a t s a l r e r n a t i v ev i e w s a s i r r a t i o n a l , e " t r e , r i s t , a n d d c r , i a n t . , ,
I'Cherr, Huan-Ch.rng, Tlte Econontic Pritrciltles of C<tnfuciusand His Scltool. tql. 2 E s p o s i t r >.,, p o l r t r c a ll s
( N e w Y o r k : C o l u m b i . rU n i v e r s i t yP r e s s ,1 9 1 1 ) , p . . 5 9 9 .Q u o t e d i n J o s e p h C h a n , " C i i v i n g tam: Beyond the Green Menace," Curre'nt History, vol. 93, no..5l9 (January
1 9 9 4 ) ,) 4 .
Priority to the V'orst-Off: A Clonfuciirn Pcrspectiveon Social V/elfare." in Cttnfuciantsnt T h e p r o b l e m w i t h " s e c u l a r f u n d a r n e n t a l i s m "i s n o t j u s t t h a t i t f a i l s t o r e s p e c t
nonliberill
(lhaiborrg (Nerv York: Canrbndgc c u l t u r a l t r a d i t i o t l s ,b u t t h a t i t p l i l v s i n t o t h e h a r r d so f " r e l i g i o u s f u n c l a m e n t a l i s t s "
for the Nlodcrn Vlorltl, ed. Daniel A. Bell and Hahm who i1s6
U n i v e r s i t v P r e s s .2 0 0 i r . 2 4 7 4 2 . s e e kt o r e j e c tw h o l e s a l ev a l u e sa n c lp r a c t i c e sa s s o c i a t e dw i t h t h e \ ( e s t e r n l i b e r a l t r a d i t i o n .
 66 HUN{i\N RI(;HTS H U N l A N R I G H T S A N D * V A L L ] E SI N A S I A ' 57

approach that promisesro reconcilereligious insightswith human rights rights in Japan, but he is also a harsh critic of the attempt to export the
ideas) may lead politictrlly moderate religious persons ir-rtodeveloping U.S.-stylerights regime, which emphasizescivil and political liberties
feelingshostile to human rights positions.-r8 over social and economic rights.a0Onuma arguesthat this regime-with
Second, it is a widespread belief within the United States-currently its excessivelegalism and individualism-contributes to various social
the dominant voice/actoron the world diplomatic srage-that exporting diseases,such as high rates of drug use, collapsing families, rampant
U.S. politicrrl practicesand institutior-rs is necessaryfor the promorion of crime, growing economic inequality',and alienation from the political
human rights abroad. As Stephen Young, former assisrantdean at the process.r I
H a r v a r d L u w S c h o o l .p u t s i r , It is obvious that recent foreign policy developments,particularly
\il/ar,have undermined U.S. moral credibility in Asia and
Many Americansseemto believethat the constitutional sincethe Iraq
patternof gover-
elsewhere.a2 The tendency to subordinate huntan rights concernswhen
nancein the UnitedStatestoday-as forrnalizedin the Declararionof Inde-
pendence. they conflict with security and commercial considerationscontributesto
the Constitution,
and the Bill of Rights-is a necessary
prerequi-
site for protectinghuman rights. Thus, they evaluaterhe performanceof cynicism regarding the true motivation of U.S. policyrnakers,not iust
among governmentofficials,but also among ordinary citizens.a3 The re-
other countriesin the field of human rights by comparingtheir conduct lil/ar
fusal to make amendsfor past misdeedssuch as the Vietnam further
with the standardsof r\mericanpolitics.se
underminesU.S. moral authoriry in Asia,aaiust as Japan's refusal to ac-
lt may well have been feasibleto act on this belief in the post-World ]X/ar cept full responsibilityfor its war of aggression weakens its own moral
II era, when the United Stateswas powerful enough to insist upon hu- authority in Asia. For the foreseeablefuture, the attempt to export
man rights norms. The U.S. capacityto dictate appropriateforms of gov- "American ideals" is likely to fall on deaf ears,if not be counterproduc-
ernment to Japan in the immediate post-Vorld War II period is :r classic t i v e ,i n t h e E a s t A s i a n r e g i o n .
example. Today, however, the relative econornic and military strength of Third, appeal to the UniversalDeclaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
East Asia meansthat the United Statesmust now rely primarily on moral as a standard for promoting human rights in East Asia is not without
authority to promote human rights in Asia. Flowever,severalfactors un- drawbacks.Although the UDHR has servedas an effectivetool in some
dermine U.S. moral authority in rhis respect. human rights strugglesin East Asia (for example, by hur-r-ran rights can-r-
Widely publicizedsocial problems in the United Staresno longer make
a0The U.S.-style priority of civil and political rights refers to the official policies of the
it the attractivepolitical model that it may once have been.For example,
U.S. governmer.rt(its invocations of "humirn rights and democracy" tend to refer to civil
Tokyo University's Onuma Yasuaki is an active prop()nent of human a n d p o l i t i c a l r i g h t s ) , t h e w o r k s o f l e a d i n g A m e r i c a n p o l r t i c a l p h r l o s o p h e r s( e ' 9 . , J o h n
Rawls's A Theory of Justlre), and U.S.-based hurnan rights gronps (e.g., Hurnan Rights
38This is n()t to deny thar aspectsof religious traditions are inconsistent with conrempo- First, formerly known as the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights). It is worth rroting,
rary human rights values and practices, but only to suggestthat aspectsof religious tradi however, that the U.S. branch of Amnesty International is explicitly critical of the official
tions may be supportive of human rights and to offer the possibility that contemporar,y U . S . d e v a l u a t i o no f e c o n o m i cr i g h t s ( s e et h e f o l l o w i n g c h a p t e r ) .
m e m b e r s o f r e l i g i o u st r a d i t i o n s n r a y b e a b l e t o f o r m u l a t e p e r s u a s i v ei n t e r p r e t a r i o n sr v h i l e a l O n u m a Y a s u a k i ," T o w a r d a n I n t e r c i v i l i z a t i o n a A l pproach to Human Rights," in TDe
excising "contingent" aspectsinimical to human rights concerns. Sec the discussiclnof Is- East Asian Challengefor Httman Rights, ed. Joanne R. Bauer and Daniel A. Bell, eds. (New
lamic feminisrn below. York: Cambridge Universitv Press,1999), 107.
re Stephen B. Young, "Human Rights a2The lack of moral authority in the rest of world was explicitly recognized by the U.S.
Questions in Southeast Asian Culture: Problenrs
fcrr American Response," in The Politics of Human RlgDt-.,ed. Paula Ner.vberg(New York: State Department when it postponed the annual releaseof its (2004) Country Reports on
New York University Press, 1980), 187. \bung then proceeds to criticize this standpoiur' Human Rights Practices follorving the public release of photos depicting the torture
"Although the Anglo-American political ,rnd legal traelition has been a forceful exposiror ( " a b u s e , " r r st h e U . S . g o v e r n m e n tc a l l e d i t ) o f I r a q i p r i s o n e r sa t A b r . rG h r a i b p r i s o n .
a3On the case of China, see Randall Peerenboom, "AssessingHunan Rights in China:
of human rights causes,it is not the only basis upon which to build a political system that
respectsindividual dignitl'." Nonetheless, he falls into his own universalist trap when he \fhy the Double Standard?," Cornell International 7a11,Journal, vol. 38, no. 1 (Feoruary
fails to distinguish between democracy irnd human rights, apperentlv assuming that 2004),73, n. 7.
a{ The Bush irdministration, needlessto s:r1',is not likell to apologize for the Vietn.rm
Western-style electoral mechanisms 21renccessar)':rnd sufficient to secure basic human 'War.
r i g h t s ( s e ei b i d . , 1 B 7 - 8 8 , 2 0 9 ) . I t i s i m p o r t a n r t o k e e p i r - rm i n d t h a t n o n d e m o c r a t i cg o v e r n - More surprisingly, perhaps, the Clinton administrirtion added insult to injurl, lry pres-
ments sometimes do fairly well at securing human rights (e.g., cor.rtemporaryHong Kong suring the Vietnamese government to repay $145 million in debts incurred by the U.S.-
or the Republic of Venice for most of the previous n'rillennium), whereas democratic gov backed government of the former South Vietnam, effectivelyputting "Hanoi in the posirion
e n . l l n e n f sc a n s o n r e t i m e sh a v e a t r o c i o u s h r r n r a nr i g h t s r e c o r d sa t h o m e ( e . g . ,S r i L a n k r r a r r d of retroactivelv footing part of the bill for a war agarnst itself." Clay Chandler, "Ghosts of
E l S a l v a d o ru n d e r D u a r r e ) i r n d a b r o a c l( e . g . ,t h e U n i t e c iS t a t e si n V i e t n : i m a n d I r a q ) . \Var Harrnt Rrrbin's VietnantTrio." Intern,ttiotul Herdld Tribune, 11 April 1997.

[ir,
 68

palgnersin the Phi'ppines during Marcos' rule),aiin many

HUMAN RIGHTS
rw AND *VALUES
HUNIANRIGHTS IN ASIA" 69

parts of East
Asia the UDHR and other u.N. documentsare not nearly oarticularcases.Moreover, U.N. documentsdo not provide much guid-
as .eieuant.
Since the UDHR was formurated without significant input a.rce*h.tl rights conflict or need to be violated preemptivelyto prevent
frorn East
Asia, it is not always clear to East Asians *hy ih. UDHR further violations of rights.
irro"ia consri_
tute "our" human rights norms (the Bangkok Declaration In short, U.S. and "international" justificationsfor hunran rights dcr
was significa.t
becauseit was the first organized.rpr.irion of Asian opporition not seemparticularly prornising from a tactical point of view, and to be
to th.
UDHR;.+e Although the UDHR is normatively binding, effectivehuman rights activistsmay need to pay m()re rtttentiorrto local
_ort turt Ariun
statesendorsedit for pragmatic, poiiticar reasonsand not lustificationsfor human rights in Asia. There are also positive reasonsln
'favor
becauseof a of drawing on the resourcesoi indigenousculrural traditions to
deeply held commirmenr ro the human rights norms it
conrains. The persuadeEast Asians of the value of human rights.
UDHR thus does not have the normative force and poriticar
relevanceof a
constirutio' that enrergesfrom genuine clialogue betw..r, First, awarenessof "values in Asia" allows the human rights activisr
interested par_
tles keen on finding a long-term solution to a sharedpolitical to draw on the most compelling iustifications i<tr human rights practices.
dilemma.r, Many rights battles rvill be fought within societiesaccording to local
The lack of a proper enforcement mechanism for the I^nternational
Bilr of norms and justifications.Consider the example of the Sistersin Islam,
Fluman Rights, as the uDHl subsequentdocuments are cailed, fur-
.1"d an autonomous, nongovernnrentalorganization of Muslim women in
ther reducesthe practicalviability of this itandard.
Another fundamental weaknessof the U.N. documents Malaysia.aeThis group challengesthe rval' that Islarn has been (mis)used
is that tl-reyare by powerful forcesto justify patriarchal practices,often contraveningIs-
pitched at too high a level of abstraction (perhapsnecessarily
so in view lam'scentral ideasand animating principles.It tries to advocatewomen's
of the need to reach agreementamong many states)
to be of use for rights in terms that are locally persuasive,meaningthat it draws upon Is-
many actual socialand political problems.+s For example,doesthe ..right
to life" (article 3 of the UDHR) mea' rhartcapital p,r.,irh-.r,t lamic principles for inspiration.50For example, the Sistersin Islam sub-
should be mitted a memorandum to the prime minister of Malaysia urging the Fed-
a h o l i s h e d ?l t i s n r u c he a s i e rr o s e c u r er g r " . - . , . , r a t r h e l e v e l
of high prin- eral Parliament not to endorse the budud law passed by the Kelantarr
ciple than to secureagreementover thJapprication of those
prirr.ipt., ,o statelegislature.The budud punishmentsincludedsuch troubling features
a5c)ne can explarn as the inadmissibilityof women as eyewitnesses. Sistersin Islam argued
this phe'omeno' in part by the facr thar the Nrarcos
regimc de- against the endorsement of these punishrnents by rejecting the crude
p e n d e dt o a g r e a t e x t e n t o n U . S . e c o n o m i ca n d m i i i t a r y
s u p p o r t . B e c a u s eo f t h i s , M . r c o s
was extremely conscious of his public irnage before
the world. This, in rurn, led hirr-,,n
equation of hudud with Shari'a and Sbari'a with Islam that helped to jus-
p l o y l e g a l i s t i cj u s t i f i c a t i o n sf o r h i s p o l i c i e s .A s M a r i a
s e r e n aD i o k n o p r t , i t , . . * h " t b "",r- tify the Kelantan enactments. Apparently this campaign was eff-ective,
rt".
way than to apply i'rernati.nal i'srrunents he had publicry becausethe Federal Parliamentsratesthat it will not pass the Kelantan
proclaimed as the guicri'g
principles of his rule?" Lerter from Maria serena
ornkno t,, b^ni.r g.ti D0-N,r""-1,., hudud code. The Sistersin Islam also engagein long-term human rights
l q 9 5 ) l o n f i l ew i t h a u t h o r ; .
a6Sumrer B. Twiss nores work, such as distributing pamphlets on Quranic conceptionsof rights
that the chinese deregateto the crrafting pr.cess of the
UDIJR and duties of men and women in the family that provide the basisfor a
argued for the inclusion of the confucia t idea of ren in
article 1, wirrch was eventually re-
flected in the idea rhat human beings are endowecl
nor just with ,.reason,,, more egalitarianview of gender relations than the regressiveideas typi-
but also rl,ith
"conscience." Twiss' "A constructive Framer.l,ork cally (and misleadingly)offered in the name of Islam itself. The assump-
for Discussing confircianism and Hu-
man Rights," rn confuci.tnisyn and Human Rrgbrs, ed. tion is that building human righrs on traditional cultr-rralresources-on
wm. Tteodore de Bary a'd ru
v e i m i n g ( N e w Y o r k : c o l u m b i a u n i v e r s i t y p r e s s ,1 - 9 9 8 ) ,
41. If that is rhe only c.ncrere the customs and values that people use to make senseof their lives-is
maniiestatior.rof an East Asran contribution to the UDHR,
however, it'.,.n,t qu.ll rh" ..it-
ics who view it as a "Vestcentric" document, more likely to lead to long-term commitment to human rights ideas and
a; one rnight also
ask why the government's voice should count as the norrnativer,v aeSeeNorani
binding final interpretation of hum:rn rights issuesin East Othman, "Grounding Human Rights Arguments in Non-Western Culture:
Asia. Ironicerlly,the sarne clrrcs Shari'a and the Citizenship Rights of Wornen in a tr{odem lslamic State," it Tlte EastAsian
who point out that East Asian governments illegitimately
present their u*r, iut..pr"tnt,.,r., Challenge fctr Human Rlgbts, ed.
of hurnan rights (often sejf-interestedo.g.-,.'.n,, for Joanne R. Bauer and Daniel A. Bell (New York: Carn-
the ile',,iarof rights) thnrg'h it reprc- b r i d g eU n i v e r s i t yP r e s s ,I 9 9 9 ) . c h a p . 7 .
s e n t sa s o c i e t y - n i d ec o n s e n s u sa r e s a y i n g ,i n e f f e c t ,t h a t i n t e r n a t i o n a l ", 5 0S i m i l a r a r g u m e n t s
h u m a n s t a n d a r d su p , h a v e b e e np u t f o r u - a r d b v I s l a m i c f e n r i n i s t si n M o r o c c o : s e eW e n d y
held in the ul)HR should be upheld becausetheir g.ver.menrs -
a NS i m i l a l p r o b l e m s
endorsed this docurnenr. Kristianasen, "Debats enrre femmes en rerres j'irlrro," Le MctnJe Diplontdtique, Avril
a r i s e w i t h p r i n c i p l t - sl a i d o u r i n s t a t c c o n s r i t u t i o n s :e n r h e ( n r r s - 2 0 0 4 , 2 0 . 1 n K e n y a , t h e a r g u m e n tt h a t f e m a l eg , e n i t acl u t t i n g i s i n c o n s i s t e n rw i t h r h c r e a c h -
taken) tenclencyto think that cortstiturionalizing property
righrs is strfficientro securethose tngsof the
rights, seecircg Alerander, "prope.l in Grobar cronsritrrtior-tr{aki.g: Q u r a n ( K o r a n ) h a s b e e n r e l a t i v e l y e f f e c t i v ea t c h a n g i n g t h e m i n d s o f l f o r r n c r )
Ar.oidingthe For, p r a c t i t i o n e r so f g e n i t a l c u r r i r r g .N { a r k L a c e y ," G e n i t a l C u t t i r r gS h o w s S i g n so f L r > s i n gF a v o r
malistTrap" (ms.on file with the aurhor).
t n A f r i c a , " T h e N e w Y o r k T i m e s , 8 T u n e2 0 0 4 , A 3 .

lr,
 HUMAN RICiHTS
practices. Conversel;',the group seemsto recognize that defending rights
b y a p p e a l i n gr o " u n i v e r s a lh u m a r rr i g h r s " ( n o r r o m e n r i o nw e s r e - f e m i -
nist ideas)is likely to be ineffective,if not counrerproducive.5r
It can be argued rhat predominantly Islamic societiesprescnra special
case,lvhere people'soutlooks and "habits of the heart" are profoundly
informed by religious values. In this context, it seemsobvious that de-
fenders of human rights are more likely to be effective if they work
within the dominant tradition. But cultural traditions may also be rele-
vant for human rights activistsand democlatic reformers elsewhere.For
'wang
example, Juntao-a long-time democratic activist who spent nearly
five years in jail after the 1989 Beijing massacre-argues that many of
the key figures in chinese dernocracy movements drew inspiration from
confucian values.From the late nineteenthcentury to the present,ne:rrly
all the important figures in the history of democracy movements in
mainland china, Taiwan, and Hong Kong tried to revive confucianism
in order to support democratizatio'. rvang Juntao supports this aspira-
tion, partly on the grounds that democracymay be easierto implement
in the chinese conrext if it can be shown that it need nor conflict with
traditional political culrure: "If confucianism is consistenrwith democ-
racy,the traditional culture may be used as a meansof promoting demo-
cratization in EzrstAsia. At rhe very least,the political rransition will be
smoother and easier,with lower costs,sincethere will be lesscultural re-
sistance."52 of course,there is an elernentof speculationhere since the
":ffectiveness" of confucian-based argLlmentsfor democracy remalns
to be proven in mainland China, but such arguments,at minimum, can
be deployedto counrer official attemptsto use "confucianism" to justity
constraintson democraticrule.
Second,local traditions may shed light on the groups most likely to
bring :rbout desirable social and political change. For example, Han
51Note, however, that the strategy adopted
by Sistersoflslam is not without controversv.
At the Bangkok workshop, a representativeof rhe group r.l,:rsser.erelycriticizcd b1' a devgur
Muslim from Malaysia, who questioned the Islamic credentials of the group, including thc
fact that some memlrerscould nc.rtread the Qurirn in Arabic. Such criticisms suggestthat lo-
cal justifications are most effective if deployed by "true believers" of the traditior.r;rn the
case of Islam, if a nonbeliever draws on lslam to push forwarcl values sirlilar ro human
rights in an Islamic context, the strategic use of the religion is not likely to be viewcd as sin-
cere and may be reiected ls another form of cultural imperialisrn. Needlessto sa1.I do not
mean to irnply that the members of Sistersof Islam are not true believers:in fact, therr sLre-
cessesin the N'lalaysianpolitical area suglieststhat they are taken seriously by orher i\tus-
lims' ln this case,it appearsto be a dispute between competing interpretations of Islarn, not
between believersand nonbelievers.
tr rVang
Junta., "Co'f'cian Demr>cratsrn (lhinese Hrstory," tn Confucianisnt fctr the
Mctdern worlrl, etl. Daniel A. Bell :rnd F{ahnr chaibong (New York: Cambridgc Llnivcrsity
P r e s s , 2 0 0 3 )6, 9 .
L.
HUN,IAN RIC]HTS AND "VALUES IN ASIA" 7l
Sangjinof SeoulNational University suggeststhat studentsfrom unlver-
sitiesin Korea, centersof "cultural authority," could draw on the Con-
fucian tradition of respectfor intellectualelitesand henceplay a crucial
role in establishinga society-widecommitrnent on the need for improv-
ing the human rights situation in Korea.53It ma,vbe that intellectualelites
are granteduncommon (by Vestern standards)amounts of respectin so-
cietiesshapedby Confucian traditions, with the impiication that hurnan
rights activistsneed to target this group in particular, as opposed to in-
vestingtheir hopes in a mythical liberalizingmiddle classthat often sup-
ports human rights reforrnsonly insofar as they maintairl a political or-
der conduciveto the accumulationof rvealth.sa
Third, regardlessof the substanceor the moral justification for one's
arguments,awarenessof local traditions may shedlight on the appropn-
ate attitude to be employed by human rights activists.For example,On-
uma Yasuaki reminds us that "[i]n Jilpar-rese culture, modesty is highly
valued. Even if one believesin certain values,proselytizing for them is
regardedas arrogant, uncivilized, and counterproductive.Instead, one
should fincl ways to induce others to appreciatethese values in a qtriet
and modest manner."55This has implications for cross-culturalcritics of
human rights violations: insteadof the high-decibel"naming and shzrm-
ing" approachs'that is often seenin East Asia as high-rnindedand self-
righteous,even by dissidentintellectuals,criticism of hurnan rights viola-
tions in East Asia is often more effectiveif it is presentedin ir more subtle
and indirect way.
Fourth, local traditions may also make one more sensitiveto the possl-
bility of alternative, nonlegalisticmechanismsfor the protection of the
vital human interestsnormally securedby a rights regime in a Western
context.5TAs Onuma (himself a professor of international law) notes,
5 3H a n S a n g j i n ," P o l i t i c a l L i b e r a l i z a t i o n ,S t a b i l i t i ' ,a n d H u m a n R i g h t s " ( p a p e rp r e s e n t e d
a t t h e H ; . r k o n er v o r k s h o p , o n f i l e w i t h a u t h o r ) , 2 1 .
5aSee David Brown aud David Martin
Jones, "Democratizirtion and the Mvth of the
L i b e r a l r z i n gl v l i d d l e C l a s s e s , "i n D a n i e l A . B e l l e t a l . , T o w a r d s l l l i b e r t l D e m o c r a c y i n P a -
cific Asia (London and New )brk: Macmillan/St. Antony's College and St. Martin's Press,
19 9 5 ) . 7 8 - 1 0 6 .
55Onuma Yasuaki, "In 'Ur-riversalvs. Rela-
Quest of Intercivilizational Hurnan Rights:
tive'Human Rights Vieived frorn an Asian Perspective," Centre for Asian Pacific Affairs.
T h e A s i a F o u n d a t i o n , O c c a s i o n a lP a p e rn o . 2 , 1 9 9 6 , 4 .
- i 5S e e t h e d i s c u s s i o ni n t h e t o l l o w i n g c h a p t e r o f t h e " n a m r n g a n d s h a m i n g " i r p p r o a c h
defended by Fluman Rights lil/atch.
5 -I f h u m a n r i g h t s p r a c t i c e sa n d i n s t i t u t i o n sr e f e r b y < l e f i n i t i o no n l ) , f o t h e l e g a l p r o t e c -
tion of rndividual rights, then, needlessto say, nonlegalistic mechanisms for the protectlorl
of those sanreindir,idual rights cannot be termed "hurnan rights practices." Hou'ever, ii the
end result is the same-that is, the protection and promotion of vital hurnan interests,
w h i c h i s p r e s u m a b l y t h e w h o l e p o i n t o f a h u m a n r i g h t s r e g i u r e - i t i s u n c l e : r rw ' h v o r r c
s h o u l d p l a c e t o o m u c h e r n p h a s i so n t h i s t e r m i n o l o g i c a li s s u c .
72 HUMAN RICiHTS HUMAN RIGHTSAND'VALUES IN ASIA"
/-)

"legalstic thinking has been rather foreign to many Japanese. . . to re- of internatiorrallaw that does not admit of any
Clearconsensuson a core
sort to juridical measuresand to enforce one's rights is not appreciatecl. However, bey<lndthis agreeclLlponcore,
l.rog"tio', on any grounds."60
Rather,one is expectedto reirchthe samegoal by resortingto lessforce- identify "civilizational" faultlineswith respect
i"-""y *.rr b. porrlbl. to
ful measuressuch as parient negotiations,mediation, and other concilia- interests'
io differing conceptionsof vital human
'"io..p."r, and
tory measures."jsIn such a context, human rights activistscan suggesr both Westernand Asian cultural traditions are complex
nonjuridical mechanismsfor the protection of vital human interests,em- various internal and external pressures.
.h;;g. ; great deal in responseto
phasizingthat legalmeans are to be employedonly as a last resort.se it is possible that most politically relevant actors' both offi-
N"nJ,fr.f!*,
some-
It would seem, then, that strategic considerationsof practical rele-
ii"i, iniellectuals, irr East Asian societiestypically endorse a
vance speak strongly in favor of local justifications for the values and "ra goods than their counterparts
i"hlt diff.r.nt set of fundamental human
practicesthat, in the Westernworld, are norrnally realizedthrougl-ra hu- societies now and for the foreseeable future. Different soci-
in lU.rr".n
man rights regirne.Perhaps,however,the deepestand most controversial regarding which human goods
;;i.; ;"y typically have different ideas
question remainsto be addressed:Can one identify aspectsof East Asian considerations,and which hu_
-"'. u. p,ot..t.d...gardless of competing
cultural traditions relevant not just in the strategicsenseof how best to as
;;; gr;,
'i^rr&everydaycan be legitimately subject to rade-offs with other goods
persuadeEast Asians of the value of a human rights regime, but also in poliiics. If there is some truth in these propositions, it is
the sensethat they may provide a nroral foundation for political prac- understanding and rninimiz-
issential for purposesof improving mutual
tices and institutions clifferent from the human rights regimes typically It may mean that
'Western irrf .rorr-.uli.tr"l .or,flict to take them into account'
favored ir.r countries? It is to this topic that we now turn. are actually culturally specific
somewestern conceptions of human rights
goods' not readily acceptedelse-
.on..p,iort, of funiamental human
and too narrow in others'
where,too encompassingin sonlecases
VRrur,s rN AsrA vERSUS\WEsrenNLreER.arrsM:
JusrrErenr-E MonRr DrrEERINcr,s?
Limiting the Set<ti Human Rights for an East Asian Context
rule who
A human rights regime is supposedto protect our basic humanity-the For example, it is not only defendersof "Asian" autocratic
fundamentalhuman goods (or needsor interests)that underpin any "rea- ,,Am.rican" idea that individuals have a vital interest tn
question the
along
sonzrble"conception of human flourishing. But which human goods are ,fl"king freely, so iong as they do not physically,harm others'
fundamental? There is little public dispute over rights against murder, that the government has a "sacred" obli-
*i,h ,h."political implilation
torture, slavery,and genocide (though, needlessto say, many govern- gation to respectthis interest. Consider the case of Dr' Sulak Sivaraksa'
ments continue to engagein nasty deedsoff the record). As Singaporean I leading p-d.-o.."cy activist in Thailand and a norninee for the
government official Bilahari Kausikan puts it, "It makes a great deal of Nobel peace prize. tn isgt the Thai ruler, General Suchinda' pressed
at
differenceif the West insistson humane standardsof behavior by vigt'r- chargesagainst Sulak for lbse-majest6-derogator,vremarks directed
ously protesting genocide, murder, forture, or slavery. Here there is rr the tyal family-and for defaming the general in tp:t:l given at
.a-
ThammaszrtUniversitv in Thaitand' Fearing for his life' Sulak fled the
5 EO n u m a , " I n
Q u e s t o f I n t e r c i v i l i z a t i o n a lR i g h t s , " 4 . S e ea l s o A l b e r t H . Y . C h e n , " N I c ' - country, but he returned in 1992 to face chargesafter the Suchindagov-
diation, Litigation, and Justice: Confucian Reflections in a Moden.r Liberal Society," irt ernment had fallen. In court, Sulak did not deny that he had attacked
Confucianisrn for tbe Moderrt.World, ed. Daniel A. Bell and Hahm Chaihong (Nerv York:
the '.dictator" Suchincla,but he did denv the charge c>flise-nuiestd,
C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s ,2 0 0 3 ) c h a p . 1 l . S e v e r a li r r e a so f c o n f l i c t , s u c h a s t r a f f i c a t r t l
industrial accidents,that would be dominated by private litigation in the United Statesare
'$Tilliam
settled by rdministrative procedures in China. C. Jones points to the imperiel 6 0B i l a h a r i K a u s i k : r n , " A s i r ' s D i f f e r e n t S t a n c l i r r d . "P t t r c i g n P o l i t . t , v o l . 9 2 ( 1 9 9 3 ) ' 3 9 '
r o o t s o f s u c h p r a c t i c e sa n d s u g g e s t st h a t a d r n i n i s t r a t i v ca g e n c i e sc a n a l s o p r o t e c t a n d p r o - T h e c o n s e n s u ss, o o n b r e a k s c l o w n o n c e i t c o m e s t o t h e a p p l i c e t i o nr l f g e n e r a lp r , , h i b i t i o n s
mote freedom in China's futr-rre.William C. Jones, "C-hineseLaw and Lrberty'," in Redlnts t o p a r t i c u l a r c a s e s ,a s i l l u s t r a t e db y d i s p u t e so r . e r t h e w h e t h e r t h e a b u s eo f I r a q i p r i s o n e r s
-
of Freedom in Modarn China, ed. Villiam C. Kirby (St,rr.rford:Stanford flniversitv Press, constitutes"torturc." There tn,ry even lle disputes over the application of "torture" ltl tver)
2004),5s--r6. d a y , f a m i l i a l s e t t i n g s :a n A u r c r i c a n s t u d e n t o f I n d i a n d e s c e n tt o l d m c t h a t h e r p a r e n t s
5 eF o r t h e v i e w t h a t l e g a l i s t i ch u m a n r i g h t s l a n g u a g er s g e n e r a l l yc o u n t e r p r o d u c t i v e( i ' e . . her
forced her ,,. ,pl.y food as a child even after she wirs crying from the pain' telling
"",
n o t j u s t i n t h e E : r s tA s i a n c o n t e x t ) g i v c n w h a t i t i s t r y i n g t o a c h i c v e ,s e eC h a r l e sB l a t t b e r g , t h a t G o d w o u l d p u n i s h h e r i f s h e d i d n ' t e a t i t ( i f t h e p o i n t o f t h i s c h i l d - r e a r i n gp r a c t r c ew i r s
" T w o C o n c e p t so f C o s r n o p o l i t a n i s m "( r n s .o n f i l e w i t h a u t h o r ) . t o p r o m o t r -t h e l o v e o f s p i c y f o o d , i t r v a s e f f e c t i v ei n t h i s c a s e ) '
 .VALLIES IN ASII\"
74 HLIN1AN
RIGHTS HI.]MAN RIGHTS AND

referring to the many serviceshe had performed for the ro,val famil1.. cioustn.tnttcr.ltrheresttlti.positive.reh.rhiIitationtrelltmC|ltiscomptrl-
be seen by'Western
comments that "lt]his act would
S u l a ke x p l a i n s : ,.rtt "t Joseph Chan this re-
invasion of privrrcy'But for some Asians
iJJr^t, a"san .,njustifiablc public safety
I did not . . . staken'rygroundon an absoluterigl.rtto freespeech. My de- a legitimatetrade-o{f for the value of
striction may be seenas
fenseagainstthe chargeoi lise-maiestlwas my innocence of the charge;
and health'"os
my defensewas my loyalty to the King and the Royal Familyand, even each household is required to attend
2. In democratic South Korea,
whereI discr.rssed the useof the chargeof lise*rajestl in currentSiarnese and dis-
meetings to receive government directives
montltty neighborhood
politicalpractice,it was to highlightabuseand to point to the ways in -What may be viewed as a minor inconvenience Korea in
irrr *"t aflairs.'u
which abusemight underminethe monarchy,rirtherthan to defer-rd any it is likely that the
1rJ"rfa ,f.." certainly outrage most U'S' citizens' and
theoreticalright to commit this action.I am not affirming,nor would I af- (lourt u'ould strike down a governmental policy that forced
U.S. Supreme
firnr,a right to commitlise-majest|. This aspectof the caseis particularly purposes of this sort as a violation o{ the
crrir.tr'ro associatefor political
concernedwith my beingSiamese and belongingto the Siamese cultural there seems to be more willingness in Ei-tst
First Amenclment. once again
traditior-r.nr to serve the common good by limiting
Ara u-on, the general population
residr,reof the Confucian cultural tradition'
In other words, Sulak aimed to persuadefellow citizensthat the dorni- trli"ta""f i"r".d.*, p..h"p, as a
nant political system should be replaced with an alternative,relatively 3.IslamiclegalscholarandhumanrightsactivistAbdullahiA.An-Na'im
democratic political structure, but he made it explicit that this dicl not offerstlrefollowingexamplefrornlslamiccriminallarv.Accordirrgtols-
and which Muslims believeto be
mean advocating the removal of the existing constraint on direct criti- lamic law, which is based on the Quran
(iod, and on the sunna, or traditions of the
cism of the Thai king. PerhapsSulak, like manv Thais, would feel deepll, the literal and final word of
by the amputation of the right
offencled,if not personallyharmed, by an attack on the king. In such a Proph., Muhammad, theft is punishable
payment of rnonetarv compcn-
case-where a constraint on the freedom of speechseemsto be endorsed hand and homicide by exact retribution or
by both defendersand critics of the prevailing political system-chere s a t i o n .A l l - N a ' i m n o t e st h r t t
should be a strong presurnption52in favor of respectingthis deviation to securesocial
Islamic law requiresthe stateto fulfill its ohligation
from American-stylefree speech.63 standards living ior all
of
and economic iustrcearrd to ensure decent
Other examplesput forward by East Asian intellectualsregarding the The law also pro-
its citizens before it can enforce these punishments'
possibility of narrowing the definition of vital human interests more makes an extensive
vides for very narrow definitionsof theseoffenses'
than would typically be the casein liberal Westerncountries-hence nar- to the accused person'
range of defensesagainst the charge available
rowing the list of rights that belong to the core of the human rights lslamic law demands
and requiresstrict standardsof proof' Nloreover'
zone-include the following: In m,v view. the prereq-
total fairness and equality in law enforcement.
punishnrentsale ex-
1. In Singapore, the policeand immigration
thereis a law that empolvers uisite conditions for the enforcelnent of these
unlikely to ma-
officersto "'test the urinefor drugsof any personwho behaves in a suspi- tremely difficult to satisfy in practice and are certainly
future'";
terialize in any lvluslim country in the foreseeable
6 r S u l a k S i v a r a k s a ." B u d d h i s m a n d H u m a n R i g h t s , " p : r p e r p r e s e n t e da t t h e B a n g k o k legitimate implcmen-
Notwithstanding the practical irnpediments to the
r v o r k s h o p o n C u l t u r a l S o u r c e so f H u m a n R i g h t s i n E a s t A s i a , M a r c h 1 9 9 6 ( o n f i l e w i t h argues that
author). tation of corporeal punishment under Islamic laq An-Na'im
n) I do not mean to der.rythat this presumption can be overridden. For erarnple, the for-
6aJosephChan,"The AsranChallenge to UniversalHumanRights:A Philosophical Ap-
eign human rights advocate would not have an obligation to refrair.rfrom criticlue of the tbe AsiaPacific'ed'James T' H'
praisal,"in Htrman Rightsand Internatictnal in
Relations
T h a i k i n g i f t h e k i n g r v e r et o c a l l f o r a n u n j t r s t i { i e dr v a r a g a i n s ta n e i g h b o r i n gs t a t e ,c v e n i f rWorld^ofHuman
all Thais support this call. But such an eventuality is very unlikelv (at least under the cur-
Tang(London:Pinter,1995),2-5,36 (quotingWon Kan Seng'"The Real
ienceon Hutnan Rights'Vienna' 1993)'
r c n t k i n g , w h o i s w i d e l y a d m i r e d a n d r e c o g n i z e dt o b e a b e n e v o l e n t r u l e r ) , h e n c e t h e ar the Secondlrorld bonfe
Rights,"aclclress
6lbid.
strong presumption in favor of deferring to the "Thai" constraint on free speech.
6 r A t t h e B a r r g k o kw o r k s h o p ( M a r c h 1 9 9 6 ) , C h a r l e s T a y l o r p o i n t e d o u t t h a t r e l a t i v e l y 66KimDaeJung,"IsCultureDestiny?",ForeignAffairs'November/December1994'190'
6-AbdullahiA.An-Na'rm,..To*'ardaCross-CulturalApprtlachtoDefinin,glnterna-
uncontroversial laws against hate speechalso exist in Canada. It could be argued, horvever, or DegradingTreat-
that the Thai case is more of a deviation from American-style free speechbecattsethe core
tional Standardsof Human Rights:The Meaningof Cruel,Inhuman'
A Qltestfor Con-
Perspectitt(s:
ment or Punishmelt," ir',Huur), Rightsin Crnss-C'",lturul
o f t h i s i d e a l i s t h e r i g h t t o c r i t i c i z ep o l i t i c a l l e l l d e r s ,r v h i c h i s p r e c i s e l yt h e r i g h t b e i n g c r l l e e l Press,1992)' 34'
senszs(Philadelphia: of
University Pennsylvania
irlto question here.

,Il
ii 76 HUMAN RI(;HTS HUMAN RIGHTS AND
'VALUF]S IN ASIA" 77

Islamic criminal law is endorsedin principle by the vast maiority of Mus-

i1i 'Western a s n r o r a l l y a c c e p t a b l e i r l t h e W e s t t o c o m n l i t e | d e r l y p a r e nto

t s tcon-
onurslng
perspectivethis often amounts
lims today,68whereasmost liberals and human rights activisrs toaa.,t' fr<rtn "r-, East Asi:rn
a'-tdpsychologicallypainful death and
would almost certainlyregard it as a violation of the human right not tcr demning one'sparent' to " lo"t'ly
a violation of a fundamental human good.
be subjectedto cruel, inhuman, or degradingtreatment or punishment. *"r'rnJrra be consideredas
il;"h";;apractice, the value of filial piety means that it is incurnbent
provide the _socialand economic condi-
on East Asian governmentsto
Expanding the Set of Hunnn Rights for an East Asian Context of the duty to care for elderly par-
ii"rr-ifr", facilitate the realization
for chil-
The East Asian challenge,however,is not simply an argument for short- .;:tr This can take the form of laws that make it mandatory
for elderlv parents' as in mainland
ening the set or rights typically endorsedby membersof Western liberal ;;;; * provide financial support
T"lwan,76 Japan, ani Singapore' and/or relianceon more indi-
societies.In some areas, there may be :r case for utidening the scope of 6hin","
benefitsthat sirnply.make
fund;rmental human goods to be protected by a rights regime. In Japa- ,"..i,..rfr.as such ^, t"*-br."k, "|tJho.,ting
and Singa-
nesesociety,for exarnple,well-developedempatheticability is regarded ;;-h;. care for rhe elderly easier,as in Ko_rea,Hong Ko.g,
cared for by adult children ls se-
as one of the necessaryconditions for the pursuit of the good life. Such Dore.:7ltr some cases'the righr to be
other "constirutional essen-
ability is normally acquired via warm, intimate human relationshipsin i"..a i" the consrituiion it..lf, along with
early stagesof life, leading TeruhisaSe and Rie Kar:atsuto argue that "a tials'"78
In sum, East Asian conceptions c ^ n r - e n r i o nof
osf vital
v i t a l human
hr lnterestsmay w(: l l j u s -
new right could be included in the category of human rights: a right tcr
be brought up in an intimate cornmunity."5e t i f y . d * i " t i n n s f r o'western
mthehumarrrightsstandardstypically-endorsedby
Consider also the value of filial piety, what Confucians consider to be liberal theorists, governments,and international human rights
input from East Asia' The
"the essentialway of learning to be human.":0 East Asian societiesin- Jo.u-.n,, formulated *iihou' substantir.rl
lines betweenthe core
fluenced by Confucianism strongly emphasizethe idea that adult chil- p.riii"" rhat different socieriescan draw different
dren have a duty to care for elderly parents,Tla duty to be forsaken onlv
in the most exceptionalcircumstances.;2 Thus, whereasit is widely seen -, o r e r t h e t l c . i ' i o r l t u c ( ) m m i ra
T h i s i i n o r r o ( l c n ) t h a r W c s t e r n e rs\ o m e t i m e .a g o n i z e
It is only ttr say that' generally speaking' East Asrans are nrore
parent to an old-age horne.
( s e er l s o c h a p t e r 1 ( ) ) '
6 8I b i d . i f . . i v r " p r o v i d e p e r s o n a lc a r e f o r o l d e r p a r e n t s
obli-
6eTeruhisa Se and Rie Karatsu, "A Conception of Human Rights Based on :rpanese 7aIn the case of elderly p"..nt, *itho.,t family members, N{encir.rsargues that the
.f ..Giving Prtority to the worst-()ff,,.
C u l t u r e : P r o m o t i n g C r o s s - c u l t u r aD l e b : r t e s , "J o u r n a l o i H r t m a n R i g D r s ,v o l . 3 , n o . . 3 ( S e p - gation falls tO the slate: see the discussicrnitr Clrarr,
t e m b e r 2 0 0 4 ) , 2 8 3 . H e a n d R i e p o i n t t o t h e p o s s i b i l i t vt h a t s u c h n e r v r i g h t s c a n i m p r o v e 23842.
7 5I n C h i n a ' s b a s i c c o u r t s , a p p e a l sb y p a r e n t s f o r s u p p o r t f r o m t h e i r c h i l d r e n c o n s t l t u t e
the hurnan rights schemeprevailing ir.rlWesterncultures (ibid., 2134-85),though my vrew rs
"coniucian values notwitfrstanding, the
th,rt well-developeclernpathetrc ability is not nearly so certtral to the Vestern liberalisnt 5-10 perce't ,ri th" ."r"r. Upl.,"* ..r*,'r"n,, that
refusal of young Chrneseto obey their legal oblig-ation to support their parents is.a signifi-
and is rrot likely to be adopted as the foundation for new rights in the West. .ifVno Wi'it t-lnd ihe Defendant?") (ms. rrn file with the au-
;0 Tu V/ei-ming, Oonfucianism in an Historicdl Perspectit'e, Institute of Easr Asian .".,t ,o.ioi p.oil",',', (LIpharr,
obligation shows the co1|in11e
P h i l o s o p h i e sO
, c c a s i o n aP l a p e r a n d M o n o g r a p h S e r i e sn o . 1 3 , 19 8 9 , 1 5 . thor). But the fact th"t von.g Chinese have such a legal
t1 Interestingly, this moral outlook still seems to inform the practices of Asian tmrnt- relevanceofthevalueoffilialpiety(thepointistopunishtheminorit'vof'voung('hrlrese
g r i n t s t o o t h e r s o c i e t i e sA. c c o r d i n g t o t h e N c p Y o r k T i n r c s ( 1 1 J u l l ' 2 0 0 1 ) , f e r v e rt h a n o n e who do not piry the "costs" of this v:ilue)'
76lt is interestrnli to note that laws meant to secure the traditional value of filial piety
in five whites in the Llnited States help care for or provide financial support for their prr-
o f c o n s e n s u si t l z r no t h e r -
ents, in-laws, or other relirtives, compared with 28 percent of African Americans, 34 per- a r e n o t s u b j e c tt . , p o l i t i c " l d e b a t ei n T i r i w a n , o n e o f t h e f t w a r e a s
on casting aside manifes-
c e r r to f H i s p a n i c A m e r i c a n s ,a n d 4 2 p e r c e n to f A s i a n A m e r i c a n s .T h o s e w h o p r o v i r l c t h c wise highl,vpolarized society where the government seemsintent
..chinese" values and practices (seech:rpter 6).
most care also feel the most guilt that they are not doing enough. Almost three-quarters ot tations*of ir"drtion"l
T,TlreSirrgaporeState,forexanrple,pro|notestheidealof..threegencrationsttnderone
Asian Americans say they should do rnore for their pilreuts, conrpared rvith two-thirds ot s u b s i d i z e da c c o m -
Hispanics, slightlv more than half of African Americans, and fewer than half of whites. r o o f " b y - . o n , . , f p o l i c i e st h a t g i v e p t i o r i t i e s o f a l l o c a t i o nf o r p u b l i c l y
w5o li'e withrn a cer-
' : T h e o b l i g a t i o n so f I i l i a l p r e t y d o n t > t e n d w r t h t h e d e L r t ho f o n e ' s p a r e n t s :e q u : l l f i f modation or additional horsingiubsidies for newly married couples
to live'.Antonio L'
n o r m o r e i m p o r t a n t , a r e t h e m o u r n i n g p e r i o d . r n d t h e s u b s e q u e n tr i t L r ; r l sc l e s i g n e dt o s l l o w t a i n d i s t a n c eo f t h e i r o l d n e i g i ' h o r h o o d w h e r e t h e i r p a r e n t s c o n t i n u t
I ongoir.rgrespect for orre'sparents. In Korea, for example, the large majority of families en-
Rappa ar-rdSor-hoon la.,
..pirlitical Implicatio's of C.nfucian Familism," Asian Philoso-
p b y , v o l . 1 . 3 ,u o s . 2 / l ( f u l y 2 0 0 3 ) ' 9 0 '
dorse the practice of ancesrorrvorship. Gcir Flelgesen,Denrocracy and Authority itr Koraa:
I The Cultural Dimension in K<trean Pollrics (Richmor.rd, England: Ourzon, 1988)' I2ti'
1* The right to b" ."."j for by adult childre' may not be expressedin rights language-
for elderl'v par-
iil fo. exampl!, the 1992 Mougolia,r Constitution specifiesthe duty to care
Arrrold Schrvarztreggerexpresseda contrasting approach in the film Pumping lron, whtrt
l e n t s .R u t l f a d u l t c h i l t l r e . c a i i b e p u . i s h . , J f o r n e g l e c t i n gt h e i r p a r e . t s , t h c d i f f e r e n c ci s t e r
r'l h e s c e r n e dp r o u d o f t h e f a c t t h r t h e c h o s e t o t r a i n f o r a b o c l y - b t r i l d i n gc o m p e t i t i o l t r a t h e r
than return home for his fatl.rer'sfuneral. minolosicalrather t h a n s u b s t a n t i v e '

tl I
I
 4 19
[ . r N i ^ *'VALUES
\ / \ r r ] E ( IN
r N ASIA"
t\ta"
lli 78 HUMANRIGHTS 1 HUMAN RIGHI'S AND

lr
I
of the human rights regime and lessimportant valuesis not particularly
conrroversial in East Asia.;e However, nrany otherwise progressivelib-
I'
,ho,rld be welcomed,
not feared.8,,_These critics-let us label them "cos-

r n o p o l i t a n . , , u . ' o f , l i b e r a l i s m , ' - h a v e s u g g e s appeal

t e d v a rof
i o human
u s m e arights.
nsofim-
ii eral voices in the
'West
still seemcompelledby a tradition of universalist philoropht."l.coherenceand political
ilil;;;.
l1 moral reasoningthat proposes
ideal polity yet paradoxically
one final solution to the question of the
draws only on the moral aspirations and
InthisSectlon'Idiscusstheirproposalsandraisesomedoubtsregarding
their feasibilitY'
debateovef the desirabilityof a core set of
political practicesfound in Western societies' As m..rrro.r!d, there is little
One obvious implication of thesereflectionsis to allow for the po551- h u r n a n r i g h t s ' s u c h a S p r o h i b i t i o n s a g a i n s t s l a v e r y , gracial
e n o c idiscrimina-
de,murder,tor-
detention' and system'ltic
bility of justifiabledeviations from Vestern-style human rights regimes ,^rir.' proio'1ged arbitiary customary law'
in East Asia. If otherwisecritical East Asian voicesendorsetheir govern- ;;.'i th.rJ rlghts have b::o-: part of international
'Western in the public rhetoric. of the international
ment's "autocratic" measures, human rights activists need to and they ur. ,ri, contested
and activistsaround the world can and do
think twice before intervention. Let me put it differently. Given the ex- arena.But political thinkers
in
tent of human suffering today's world, with so many obvious and un- t a k e d i f f e r e n t s i d e s o n r n a n y p r e s s i n g h u n r a n r i g h t s . c o n c e rcode'"82
nsthatfall
the "minimal and universal
controversialviolations of the minimal conditions of human well-hei19, *irid. what Michael Walzer terms
'Western
it is difficult to understand why human rights groups would Thisgrayareaofdebateincludescriminallaw'familylaqwomen's
;ft; social ancl economic'western-style rights, the rights of indigenouspeoples,and
want to spend (scarce)time and money critiquing hurnan rights "viola-
democratic pla.ctices'For cos-
tions" that would not be viewed as such by East Asians with no partictr- the attempt to universalize
current"thin" Iist of universal
lar axe to grind. mopolitans,the question is: how.can the
rights?
hu-"r, rights be expattded to include solne contested

Cnoss-Cur-ruRRrDteloGUES oN HuuaN RtcHrs: Tbe Perilsof InclusiueDialogues

'Wnar
Is rue PotNr? to human
Onuma Yasuaki proposes an "intercivilizational approach
members of "civilizations"
;;h,;; that wouli enrail dialogue between
But it is not just a matter of defendingparochial attachmentsto palticu- on human
*ih ,h. aim of achieving the- widest possible consensus
lar nonliberal moralities.Far fron.rarguing that the universalistdiscout:se
on human rights should be entirely displacedwith particular,tradition-
\Western-stylehuman righrs s0There is less reason to welcome such proposals if they are likelv to be m.otivated by
sensitivepolitical language,some critics of self-interested
economic or political self-interest, but it still does not mean that seeminglv
have criticized liberals for not taking universality seriouslyenough, for Malaysian Prime
proposals should be rejected, a prrori' In reaction to a suggestionby thtn
failing to do what must be done to make human rights a truly universrl Minister Mahathir bin lvlohamail tlrat the Ur.riversalDeclaration of Human
Rights might
ideal. If the ultimate aim is an international order basedon universalll' be in need of review to allow for more input from developing nations, then U'S' Secretary
"relentless" in oppos-
acceptedhuman rights, the lVest needsto recognizethat human rights of State Madeleine Albright vowed that the United Stateswould be
poor iob of
have been in constant evolution and allow for the possibilityof positive ing review of the UDHR. l-eaving aside the point that the united Statesdoes a
Al-
[vlng up to the social rights enshrined in the UDHR' the problem with
non-'Westerncontributions to this process.Such critics argue for more ",ld ".nlt.,"-i. particular rights affirmed in the UDHR should
brigf,t's
-validposition is the assu'-rptio' th"ith"
cross-culturaldialogueson human rights,with the perspectivethat Asian be for eternity. As Pete, Van Ness puis it, "tv{ahathir should instead [of
being con-
proposals for improving the current "'Westcentric" human rights regime demned] har,e been encouraged to make a concrete proposal' because one of the bastc re-
quirements of achieving and sustaining consensusis to be prepared to reshapeglobal star-r-
dards wheneve, betteririnciples Jir.ou.r"d"' Virn Ness, ed' Debating Human Rigbts
7eI leave aside the question of cultural differencesthat may aff'ectdifferent ways of Jerer-
( L o n d o n : R o u t l e d g e ,1 9 9 9 ) , I 1 . "..
n r i n i n g t l r e c o r e o i h u m a l r i g l t t s u , i t h i n s o c i e t i e s . F o r e x a m p l e , n e w lal r r i v e d H m o r l g i r t r t r t i - 8 1T e r r o r i s tg r . r i p s t h a t j u s t i f y t h e m a s sk i l l i n g o f c i v i l i a n sa r e a n o b v i o u s e x c e p t i o n 'I t r s
gron,J,n the United StatesbJicve that ritual killings of arrimals is necessar.v to heal sick fanr-
interesting ro i.rt.,^h,r*'"u"r, th,rt eren Osarna bin l,aden does not straightiorwardly pro-
iiy -.-b"rr, but once the practice became known to residents of Merced, California, the c l a i m r e s i o n s i b i t i w f o r t h e S e p t e m b e r1 1 a t t a c k s , p r e s u m a b l y o n t h e g r o u t r d s t h a t t h i s
lirnits'
I .ity pass.d an ordinance ba'ning rhe slaughter of Iivestock and porrltry within city w o u l d u n d e r m i n eh i s b a s eo f s u p p o r t .
Afiter'
see Anne Facliman,The Spirit catches You and You Fall Dou'n: A lTnong child, FIet 82lllichael -$/alzer,lnterpretition and Social Criticisnr (Cambridge: Harv:rrd Universrty
Giroux'
ican Doctors, and tbe collision of Two cultures (New Yrrk: Farrar, Straus. an.l Press,1987). 24. Seealso \%lzer, Tliift antl Thin (Notre Dame: Ll.iversitl' of Notre f)rme
of humrlll
lt
il
1997), 107-8. Were the Hrnong ro frame their g,rievarrccs
rights, thcy woulcl have a good caseto arguc that their bssic rights arc
in terms of the lar.rguage
being vrolated'
P r e s s .19 9 4 ) .

il
 'VALU}']S IN ASIA'' I] I
80 HUMAN RIGHTS FIL]NIAN RIC;F{TSAND
["
L
rights.83Such a dialoguewould seekto addressthe concernthat most in- I the decisionsof national
political leaders'there will be endlessdisputes
li select"representative"participants'
ternational hulnan rights groups interpret and prioritize rights according ou., ,ft. right way to
to the Western liberal tradition and that international human rights in-
struments have not yet adequately incorporated non-\Westernvlews. Lead to Meaningful Resolutions?
Catt Tolerating Disogreement
Onuma's proposal, horvever,is not without problems. For example, the
period of in Thailand with Buddhist prac-
boundariesbetweencivilizations,if tl-reyexist at all, are never easyto de- Following an extended .study Taylor has put
lineate,especiallywhen consideringthe fact there are disputesover these ir,"n"., thinkers, the catholic.philos.pher charles.
""a fot an unforced' cross-cultural
issuesevenwithin particular traditions.More serious,this dialoguewould forward another p'oio'ut
He"t"bli'hing
imagines a cross-culturaldialogue be-
excludethose not belongingto the maior religious,philosophical,and cul- consensuson human rights'
difft"ttt Rather than argue for the
tural traditions:marginalizedgroups and individualswho may be particu- tween representatlvesoi "Ji'io"'' participarrts
larly vulnerableto human rights abuses.sa For example,membersof small ;;;;i;"lidity of their views, however' he suggeststhat
that.their orvn beliefsmay be mistaken.
indigenoustribes, sex workers, refugees,and people who are mentally ill ,r,r"rJ foi the fossibility
"il"* p".,,a,p"tt" can learn from each other's moral untverse'
would not have their interests representedat the intercivilizational dia- This way,
whe.n.differencescannot be recon-
logue on human rights. There will come a point, however,
ihat different groups' countries' reli-
Addressingthis problem by increasingparticipation, however,would ciled. Taylor .tpti.itly tttog'li"t
hold incompatible views on theol-
raise its own set of problems. Amitai Etztoni, for example, proposes a gious communltres' tittl tiuiji'u'ions tn"'
t"ll::
response'
worldwide moral dialogue that would not be limited to representativesof 3Ly,*.r"pnysics,andhumannature'In it^*::: "
norm^sis possibleonly
human rights
the major civilizations:"Before lve can expect to see global mores that "penuine, untorced consensus"on
have the compellingpower of thoseof various societies,the citizensof the ti;."';ll;;^f;;;r;ement on the ultimate iustifications of these
foundational valueswhen we en-
world will have to engagein worldwide moral dialogues."85 But does it ,ro.-r. Instead of defendingcontested
mean that five billion people must participate in the global dralogue? ;;;;;;t points of resistance"(and thus condemningthe values we do not
abstract from those beliefsfor
Leaving aside the issueof cost, the main obstacle such megaloguesface is like in other societr.ti,;; titottld try to
consensus" of huntan
getting participants to agree upon anything more than vague aspirations ,-fr. fo.por. of *o.t i"g out an "ove,rlapping
it, "*t 'hnoli ot the ncxms while
and empty platitudes.Put simply: the more inclusivethe deliberations,the rights norms. A, 1^;i;;putt "g"t we would be content
and
more difficr.rltit will be to arrive at any politically meaningful resolutions. di"r"g.."i.tg on why ,h.y *"" the.right norms'
t"''di'tutbJ by the differences of profound un-
So participation needsto be limited. One might reasonablyargue that to live in this .o.r...rr.,,,
a representativesampleof leadersand citizensfrom around the world, if derlying belief'"86
human rights for-
the sample were kept small enough, would be able to reach agreement \7hile this proposal moves the debate on universal
thing, it n-raynor be realis-
on the global values that are supposedto guide and constrain policy- ward, it still tacescertain difliculties.For one
from the valuesthey
makers. But this leads to a number of questions: Should the dialogue tic to expect trtrt peofle will be witling to abstract
hutnan
involve political leaders,diplomats, international lawyers,leadersof reli- care deeply Jrrr-g the course of a global dialogue.on
"r,oot f'om culrurally specific wavs of
g i t - r u tsr a d i t i o n s ,a c n d e m i c sr.e p r e s e n t a t i v eosf n o n g o v e n m
r e n t a lo r g a n i - rights. Even if o.,rofJ"*i.tio
"b"t"ttthe likely outcom€.is a withdrawal
zations, ordinary citizens,or a combination of these?How many from justifying and impleir.i,i"g
"c-rtrns, ac-
each group? How many frorn each country? If the outcomesof thesede- to a highlv general, realm of agreementthat fails to resolve
"br,,"ti rights' For example' particip.antsin a cross-
liberations are meant to command international legitimacy and trump tual disputesover contested
while
cultural clialogue.;-;gt.t oJtht right to potitit"t participation'
*h"t this means in practice: a Singaporean
8 r O n u m a , " T o w a r d a n I n t e r c i v i l i z a t i o n a lA p p r o a c h t o H u m a n R i g h t s . " radically disagreeing,-tpor-,
\ 'hereas a
saSee Neve Gordon, ed., From the Margins ol Gbbalization: Critical Perspectires on official may argue ?hui .o-p.titive elections are sufficient'
.WesternliberalwillarguethatmeaningfulelectionsmllstL.reaccompa-
Hunan Rights (Lanham, MD: Lexir.rgtcrnBo<-rks. 2004)
t i A m i t a i E t z i c r n i ,T h e N e ; l l C c l d e n R u l e ( N e w Y o r k : B a s i c B o o k s , 1 9 9 6 ) , 2 3 6 . I h a v e
nied by the freedomsof speechand association'
c r i t i c a l l v e v a l u a t e d E t z i o n i ' s p r o p o s a l s i n m y e s s a y ," T o w a r d a u l n t e r u a t i o n a l H u t l t a n
Rights (and Responsibilities)Regime: Some Obstacles," in Autonomy and Order: A Cont-
s6CharlesTavlrlr...Contlitionsofanl.Ilrforcet](]crtrsetrsusonHutnanRights..'irlT}c
tntrnitarian Anthslogy, ed. Edward W. Lehn.ran (I-auhzrm, Iv{D; Rorvman & Littlefield'
East Asian Cballenge for Human Rigltts' 121'
2 0 0 0 ) .2 1 1 - 1 8 .

I
L
I
i
82

The problems noted above are not simply the<>retical

HIJN1AN RIGHTS

Tbe Failurcs of Cross-Lulttrral Dialogrtes

possibilities.In the
last decadeor so, there have been many atternptsto put forward trulv
r
I
I
In short, the aspiration
substantive
lead ro eirher
T{UMAN R](;HTS ANI)

to developvaluesof mtlre universalscope

content may not be realiza,ble'e0,Cross-cultural
emprl',piatitttdesor politicallv controversial
r:r.^lrrro be relectecloy affectedconstituents'The
dialogue
with
will
conclusrons
good news is that no
* V A T - I ] E SI N A S I A " rJ3

done to the human rishts movement (oth.erthrn'

universirlmoral values,and the responsehas ranged from hostility tc, iti- T:'l':"J;;;';;;;..i.t
lLrat"'
more productively spent
runqs that could have been
r I

difference.None has come even close to supplanting the Universal Dec- oerhaps' wastlng philosophers and theolo-
laration of Human Rights as a normative frame of reference,notwitl.r- ],r"owhere). The truth of the matter is that only
trulv universal
standingthe ongoing controversyregardingthe "Westcentric"perspecrivc :i:'":;i1't; d;;piy concernedabout the r.reedto secure
h'"---

of this document. loundationstorhumanrights.Forgoverr-rmentsconcernedwithimple-

The amemptb,va group of former headsof state to formulate "A Uni- f f P n t i n g h u n l a n l-r-'r
ur!ur-^-o lgnts,n-ationallawsusual|1.5erVeas-then()rll.l3tive
' rights groups (or their functional
versal Declaration of Human Responsibilities"sT illustratessolne of the point of reterence'-ro local human
irl the local values and
problems with global dialogues.This declarationwas supposedto corn- .^"ivalent). it is suthcient to ground their work
*.rr',b.., of tlt. communitl' use to make senseof their
plenrent the UDHR, but its main effect would have been to dilute it. ,r-#;;;,i.,
human rights organizations,much of the
Most of the declarationconsistsof vacuous moralizing. Article 3 rs not ,"iri fit.r. For international
gap berweerrpublic allegianceto uil-
atypical: "Everyone h:rsthe responsibilitvto promote good and to avoid *rrf. *lf consist in exposing the
;;;t;.Jrights (s*ch,'' tht"'lght t-toito be tortured) and sad reality of
evil in all things." Such platitudes are not necessarilyharmful. but thev or deliherating
serveto draw attention from the really important rights that do need to ;;;;i;* , b J r . . T h e y w i l l n o t w a s t et i m e w r i t i n g a b o u t
;;;iobiliry of practicesthat everyone condemns at the levelof
be enforced. il:;;,?.
provide funds and expertise to lo-
The more serious problem is that some sections of the declararion o.i.r.iot.. Such organizationswill also
a'd here too the.leck of a
would be politically dangerousif they were t:rken seriously.Considerar- i;i;"'J;";;l li,r,''on rigl.rtsorganizatio.s,
foundatio,1-fo' h''11"tt rights is not an obstacle: every-
ticle 14: "The freedom of the media to inform the public and to cririciz-e i*ft
""*..tal
institutions of societyand governmentalactions, r,vhichis essentialfor a body agreeson the sharedends'
en-
with responsibilityand discretion.Freedonrof tirls"i, not to deny, of course' that human rights organizations
iust sociery,nrust be r"rsed course of their work' But practi-
the media carries a special responsibility for accurate and truthful re- counter ethical challengesduring the
such chal-
iL
porring. Sensatiorralreporting that degradesthe human person and dig- tioners, uot academiciheorists, are best placed tt> identif'v
lenges.Let us then turn to reflections on dialogues that involve the views
nity must at all tinresbe avoided." It is interestingto note that the group rvith par-
of iractitioners. The next chapter will discuss those challenges'
of former headsof state includesthe father of the "Asian values" debate, normative re-
ticular focus on the East Asian regicln, followed b.v son-re
SingaporeelclerstatesmanLee Kuan Yew. In Singapore,Lee has ofren dealing with the
flectionsthat may provide some practical guidance for
advancedsimilar argumentsabout the need for "responsible"journalisrn
challenges.
that "at all tirnes" avoids "sensationalreporting that degradesthe hurnarn
person and dignirv." The result? Singaporean newspapershave been '0 Fred " T h e p o l r r to f c o m l ' a r a r t r t . p o l i t i e ' r l
D a l l m . r y re x p r e \ \ r \ a n t o r eo p t i t n t s f i cv t r w :
completely defanged,and foreign newspaperslike the Asidn Wall Street
theory, in .y ui.uu, is ireciselv ,n ,l.tou" toward a tnore genuine universalism' and beyond
Journal and the International Herald Tribune have had ro pay huge the ,purious 'rr-riu"rr"^lit,v'clairneci by the Western canon and by some recent ilrtellectual
damagesfor having "defamed" membersof the Lee family. Not surpns- movements.,,Dallmayr, .,Bevond Monologue: For :r Comparative Political Theorl'," Per-
ingly, article 14 met with vigorous opposition from iournrllists.ssSuch s p e c t i u e so n P o l i t i c s , - . o l . 2 , n o . Z ( J u n e 2 0 0 4 ) , 2 - 5 3 ' I d o n o t m e a n t o i m p l y t h a t c r n s s -
but
opposition ensuredthat the Universal Declaration of F{uman Responsr- c u l t u r a ld i a l o g u " t i r e o r i z i n gs h o u l d n o t b e d u n e ( q u r t c t h c o p p o s i t e ) '
the main aim"world "r,d.o-p"r"tive :rrcrs of nroral di{fere'ce, thus teachirlg us
be to identify iustifiable
bilities never did get far in the UN GeneralAssembly.se "about the diversity arrd richness of u'hat huma' beings may reasonrbly priz'e' anJ about
t h e i m p o s s i b i l i t yo i r e c o n c i l i n ga l l t h e y p r i z e i ' j u s t a s i n g l e i d e a l " ( D a v i d W o n g , " C o t n -
8- See http://rvww.interactioncouncil.org/udhr/declaration/udhr.pdf (visited 2 Nt.rreh parative philosoohv: Chinese lud V.stein," Stanford Encyclctpediaof Philosophy,http:ll
2 0 05 ) . plato.stanford.ei.,/",-rtri"./.o-parphil-chiwes/, 9, visited 18 February 20{)5)' ;rs weil as
s sh t t p : / / w w w . w p f c . o r g / i n d e r . i s p ? p a g c = N e r . v s l e t t e r % , 2 0 D e c e m b c r % , 2 0 2 1 ' L 2 ( ) 1 9 9 E learning from other cultures with the airn of improling fl:rws in one's own culture'
i v i s i t e d2 N { a r c h 2 0 0 . 5 ) .
s ' " f h e L - I N E S ( j Oe f f o r t t o c l e v e l o p" A C o l n m o n F r a m e w o r k f o r t h e E t h i c s o f t h e 2 l ' '
( l e n t u r v " s i n r i l a r h e n d e . li n t a i t u r c .
I