Constitutional Environmental Rights: An Investigation and Analysis Based on Constitutional Texts of All Countries

Although the academic community still has some theoretical divergences on whether environmental rights should be a basic human right or a basic constitutional one, there are an increasing number of countries including this right in their constitution. Based on the constitutions in 193 countries, this paper aims to examine the fundamental situation of incorporating environmental rights into a constitution. It has been concluded that environmental protection as a right is written into a constitution in three aspects, namely, as a constitutional right, a civic duty, and a national policy, principle or social goal. Through summarizing these, this paper argues that including environmental rights in a country's constitution is the means by which all citizens shall enjoy a good, healthy, sustainable and harmonious environment suitable for their development, have timely and comprehensive access to reliable information about environment, participate in making public decisions related to the environment, and ask for legal remedies and compensation for any infringement on their environmental rights, or injury or damage to their environmental property. But even after environmental rights are incorporated into a constitution, there may be theoretical and practical difficulties in their implementation.     

论行政紧急强制中的人权克减问题

非常状态下的人权保障状况更体现法治国家的成熟程度。基于其紧急性、强制性、单方性和高裁量性等特征，非常状态下采取的行政强制措施对行政相对人人权的克减是客观存在而且经常出现的，也是必要的，但这种人权克减应当符合法治原则、比例原则和权利救济原则。因此，有必要从立法上确定行政紧急强制中人权克减的可操作性标准，以完善我国非常状态下的人权保障机制。     

The “Erga Omnes” of the Protection of Fundamental Human Rights and the “Complementary Protection” of Refugees Not Prescribed by the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees

The United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees 1951 and its Protocol in 1967 set Four Essentials to limit the definition of "refugee". The concept of complementary protection emerged in academia and practice for those who, though they do not have the essentials,are in need of protection. Complementary protection is considered not only a moral obligation, but also a legal obligation. Although as the result of developing the principle of "non-refoulement" in international law, "complementary protection" should be limited when economic and social rights are concerned. The development of the non-refoulement principle and the emergence of "complementary protection" are based on the Erga Omnes of human rights. The International Court of Justice has restricted the emergence and evolvement of obligations Erga Omnes within the scope of obligations concerning fundamental and non-derogable human rights, and therefore,the application of "complementary protection" in protecting economic and social rights has been limited. Only when the unbalance of economic and social rights has been serious enough to impact other fundamental human rights will the obligation of "complementary protection" ensue.     

税收立宪的价值及其在我国的运用

西方国家通过税收立宪,实现了国家征税权的宪法限制、私有财产权的宪法地位、纳税人权利的宪法保障,最终走上了宪政发展的道路。我国宪法税收条款缺失,没有规定税收法定原则,行政机关成为税收立法权和执行权的中心,使得征税权在我国成为几乎不受约束的权力。我国宪法对于私有财产权与公有财产权实行不平等保护,只规定了纳税人义务内容而没有规定权利内容,导致纳税人权益无从得到切实保障。税收立宪的价值就在于通过限制国家征税权来保障人权并实现宪政。     

Protection of Basic Human Rights in the Application of Big Data to Counter Terrorism

In the era of big data, the ways people work, live and think have changed dramatically, and the social governance system is also being restructured.Achieving intelligent social governance has now become a national strategy.The application of big data technology to counterterrorism efforts has become a powerful weapon for all countries.However, due to the uncertainty, difficulty of interpretation and potential risk of discrimination in big data technology and algorithm models, basic human rights, freedom and even ethics are likely to be impacted and challenged.As a result, there is an urgent need to prioritize basic human rights and regulate the application of big data for counter terrorism purposes.The legislation and law enforcement regarding the use of big data to counter terrorism must be subject to constitutional and other legal reviews, so as to strike a balance between safeguarding national security and protecting basic human rights .     

少数人权利保护的法理述评

少数人权利保护的法理基础包括自由主义、社群主义、自由主义的多元文化主义、宪法爱国主义等。纵观少数人权利保护理论,尊重和认可少数人群体的文化价值、关照少数人在社会结构中的不利地位是共同特点。宪法爱国主义强调,在国家的族际关系整合过程中,要强化国家认同、公民身份认同,推动国家朝着立宪主义方向发展。对我国而言,尊崇宪法地位,以宪法精神凝聚各族群众,以宪法权威捍卫中华民族共同体基础,是少数民族权利保护的重要发展方向。     

Diversity of Civilization and Development of the World Human Rights Cause——Summary of “2019 South-South Human Rights Forum”

From December 10 to 11,2019,the State Council Information Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs jointly held the 2019 South-South Human Rights Forum in Beijing.Participants from more than 80 countries,regions and international organizations discussed and exchanged views on such topics as "the practices and experiences of human rights protection in the countries of the Global South","path of human rights development against the background of the diversity of civilizations","building a Community with a Shared Future for Human Beings and global human rights governance".Participants in the forum actively voiced their national human rights views,exchanged human rights development experiences,explored human rights development paths in developing countries,and reached broad consensus.In an international environment featuring the rise of unilateralism and hegemonism,the South-South Human Rights Forum issued a strong message of solidarity and cooperation among developing countries on human rights issues,and also conveyed to the world the firm determination of developing countries to jointly promote the healthy development of the world's human rights cause.     

Connection Between Policies and Laws on Human Rights Protection:Case Study of the National Human Rights Action Plans

China's National Human Rights Action Plans connect policies and laws on human rights protection in terms of ideas,procedures,and contents.The functions of the connections are the guidance to local policymaking,the promise of state commitment,and the linkage to international human rights goals.At the practical level,the enhancement of the connection between policies and laws will promote the effectiveness of human rights protection.In order to improve the rationality of human rights policies,there should be more researches on National Human Rights Action Plans,and more public participation in the process of the Plan drafting.     

Financial Law Protection Approach and System Construction of Economic,Social and Cultural Rights——international Comparison and Chinese Experience

Under Article 2(1) of the International Covenant on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights,States undertake three primary obligations,namely "obligations of progressive realization," "obligations of non-retrogression" and "obligations to the maximum available resources." In a domestic constitutional setting,it has been firmly established that protection of economic,social and cultural rights is unavoidably linked to all kinds of economic resources,this so-called "resource-dependence dilemma" has posed serious constitutional challenges to fulfilling our commitments to human rights.It is therefore not only useful but also necessary to transform the three primary legal obligations under ICESCR into specific and concrete fiscal obligations.This article provides three approaches for a systematic construction of a financial analysis of economic,social and cultural rights protection.First,States should identify all the available revenues in a democratic process.Second,the budget allocation of economic resources per se is a matter of allocative justice,and State legislatures must act in a way that meets the essential requirements of allocative justice.Lastly,States are bound by certain legal principles to deal with reasonable budget expenditure,and this is the primary obligation for the executive.Based on intensive international comparisons of selected jurisdictions and China's rights realities,this article proposes bifurcated solutions for China 's constitutional protection of economic,social and cultural rights both on horizontal and vertical levels regarding its ongoing fiscal reforms.     

On the Making and Significance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was the first common commitment of the international community to human rights. It demonstrated the belief and determination of humanity to maintain peace, democracy and human dignity. The process of formulating the Declaration was difficult. But in the spirit of cooperation,countries finally succeeded in reaching a consensus on human rights.The making of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights had great value and significance for promoting world peace and development,and it has had a far-reaching impact on the rule of law in international human rights and the development of the human rights legal systems in various countries. A re-examination and analysis of the process of formulating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights will help us understand the purposes and objectives of the Declaration and review the great value of the spirit of the Declaration to the world today.     

The Relationship between Human Rights and Development——A Brief Analysis of the Perspectives of Chinese Scholars and the Practice of Chinese Government

With the change and development of the concept of human rights, the thinking about the relationship between human rights and development is becoming more and more deeply. Under this background, the author profoundly realizes that both recognizing the economic development as the first priority like some developing countries do and considering the human rights to be the most important thing as most developed countries do are unilateral and harmful to the social progress. Human rights and development are interdependent and mutually promoting each other. This paper introduces the three main viewpoints of the relationship between human rights and development. Based on the changes of the attitudes of the UN and China to the relationship between human rights and development, this paper holds that though it is a great progress for the Chinese government to understand that human rights and development are interdependent, there are still lots of difficulties in realizing their mutually benefiting relationship in reality. These difficulties are due to the lack of professionals who enjoy good understandings of the rules for social development and are capable of practicing human rights theories. Therefore, the authors suggest that the promotion of human rights education is instrumental to the development and progress of human society.     

The Gist of the Marxist view on Human Rights

Marx and engels' great ideology contains rich thought on human rights. Based on the class structure and social development in their lifetimes, the two founders of Marxism profoundly revealed the essence of human rights. They revealed the historical process, class essence and hypocrisy of the bourgeois human rights, and expounded the important principle that human rights are always subject to economic and social development. The Marxist of human rights theory emphasizes that even in a capitalist society, the proletariat should not abandon its efforts to strive for human rights, and that the proletariat should use human rights well to improve their survival and development conditions as well as the advancement of the society as a whole. In the localization process of Marxism in China, the Marxist view on human rights has been further developed and innovated in China, and the socialist human rights theory with Chinese characteristics has been formed, which is used to guide the development of China's human rights cause.     

Prison Management Works Hard to Bring Human Rights under Good Protection

EDITOR＇S NOTE： Human rights protection in prisons is an important part of China＇s National Human Rights Action Plan and the human rights conditions in prisons constitute an important hallmark of the human rights protection level of the country. In order to get to know more about human rights protection in this special area, this reporter paid a visit to the No. 4 Prison in Henan Province, central China.     

公安行政处罚适用中的人权保障问题

公安行政处罚是公安行政执法中运用最广泛最严厉的具体行政行为。新颁布的《治安管理处罚法》明确规定，实施治安行政处罚，应当公开、公正，尊重和保障人权。当前，公安行政处罚中人权保障的状况如何，在公安行政处罚中如何加强和体现对人权的切实保障，本文试围绕这两方面问题加以分析、阐述。     

《治安管理处罚法》体现的立法原则

《治安管理处罚法》所体现的立法原则和精神,既突出强调了保护公民合法权利,又注重加强社会治安管理,体现了尊重和保障人权与加强社会治安管理相平衡的原则;它既扩张了警察权力,又对警察权的运行作了严格规范,控制了警察权,体现了保障警察有效履行职责与规范警察权力行使相统一的原则;它还体现了实体和程序并重,针对性与前瞻性相结合的原则。《治安管理处罚法》宽严相济,刚柔并举,归根到底要求公安机关及人民警察要“执法为民”。     

Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Discourse of Community with a Shared Future: China's Ideas and Experience

Countries in the world lack the ability to maintain internal independence and to cope with new external risks, sov ereign state relations based on respect for diversity are giving way to global solidarity. The concept of a community with a shared future for all mankind emphasizes relative independence along with the integration of human society and the joint liability of states. The basic principle is to recognize and respect diversity so as to maintain and enhance integration. In the discourse of a community with a shared future, we must look at human rights and the promotion and protection of human rights from a relational and symbiotic perspective. The concept of human rights is comprehensive, the universality of human rights does not mean the universality of human rights standards, and the global governance of human rights needs to strengthen both the internal c and external capacities and conditions of countries. In this regard, China's experience is to form a task-oriented target governance model, enhance the enforceability and evaluability of the legal protection of human rights, substantiate and operationalize human rights principles and proposals at all levels through efforts such as establishing mechanisms and initiating forums, and continue to implement and enhance the external cooperation mechanism. The vulnerability, diversity, and scarcity of individuals and human societies are the roots of the problems of global peace and security, and a community with a shared future is also a community of rights, obligations and responsibilities. Therefore, the promotion and protection of human rights is not a burden to be distributed, but a responsibility to be shared, a collective responsibility based on shared values.     

从国际人权公约谈赦免的法制化

根据国际人权公约的规定,任何被判处死刑的人有权请求赦免。我国目前的赦免未完全脱离传统的赦免,应建立现代赦免制度以实现其社会功能。因此,首先要修正我国人权宪政体制,其次制定赦免法,增设赦免种类,设立专门机构受理赦免案件。     

论和谐社会弱势群体权利的法律保护

关注弱势群体的权利保护,是当代世界人权的发展趋势。弱势群体作为一种社会现象,存在于人类社会产生至今的各个阶段。现阶段我国的弱势群体是在市场竞争中被边缘化的群体,是市场经济发展的必然产物。弱势群体的权利保护与和谐社会的建立之间存在着非常密切的关系。对弱势群体的利益保护实质上是对每一个社会成员的人权的保护,建立、完善弱势群体权利的保障体系是坚持科学发展观正确处理弱势群体与社会发展关系的一个重要方面,是实现和谐社会的必要条件。     

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the “Spirits” of Confucian Ethics

At present, the value revealed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is under attack, and the consensus on human rights value is experiencing division globally,which asserts that "human rights can only be provided by paradox". The root of this is that" reason ",the metaphysical nature of human rights proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,is infinitely magnified while the " spirit " is ignored. History and philosophy show that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights entails the Confucian ethical " spirit ".At this time,this potential factor is gradually emerging in the course of world history and became a force to bridge the global division of human rights values. The significance of Confucian ethics " spirit " to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights lies in: from the perspective of " spirit ", its holistic view, bridging individual rights and collective rights; its relational view focuses on the realization of human rights and transcends the " paradox of human right; progressing from the value consensus to common action, so that in the process of judging the progress of human rights in the world, we consider not only the value consensus, but also the common action.     

民族文化传承、保护、利用中的人权问题--法人类学的一项尝试研究

民族文化传承、保护、利用中的人权问题,是一个不容忽视的现实问题。对于民族文化中存在的侵害人权的文化因子应予以剔除;为保证民族文化传承渠道的畅通,必须解决好权利冲突的问题;民族文化保护实践中采取的措施不能有悖人权保护;对于民族文化的现代贡献及传统知识在现代社会的运用,应当有相应的激励机制和权利的补偿。