International Human Rights and Chinas Record

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International Human Rights and Chinas Record
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Class Objectives

• To examine the justification of the U.N.
  Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• To compare the Declaration with the performance
  of China
• To critically examine the content of the
  Declaration in light of actual behavior

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Justification of Universal Human Rights

• Three big questions
• 1. How are the rights justified?
• 2. What rights are justified?
• And in addition to these familiar questions
• 3. Are they universal?

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Three main arguments for justification of U.N.
Decl.

• 1. Inherent dignity of persons requires us to
  recognize equal and inalienable rights -- natural
  rights argument.
• 2. Peace requires recognition of rights
  --instrumental argument
• 3. Member states have agreed to uphold rights --
  contractarian argument