The Chinese People Must Participate in a Universe of Rights

The values underlying human dignity are common to all peoples, universally applicable standards of human rights that hold no regard for race, language, religion or other belief. These standards, symbolized by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, have increasingly earned world acceptance and respect. When a commemorative gathering was held last November in Beijing to honor the 40th anniversary of the declaration, many of us were delighted, because it seemed that the principles of human rights were finally starting to take root in our ancient land.

Time after time, however, these fond dreams have been shattered by harsh reality. After the bloody tragedy of last June, we must admit to having been far too optimistic.

Some of those who were responsible for the repression have recently attempted to defend their behavior by declaring that “China has its own standards of human rights.” They have rejected the world’s condemnation by refusing to admit the universal nature of human rights. They appear to think that as long as they can dub something a “household affair,” to be dealt with internally, they can ignore the laws of human decency.

During China’s long period of isolation, this ideology of purporting to be “master of all under heaven” may have been an effective means of controlling the country. But in the latter part of the 20th Century, declarations about “household affairs” only serve to expose their authors as feudal dictators. Such statements have lost their capacity either to intimidate or deceive.

A growing number of Chinese believe that for China to catch up, our society must absorb those aspects of modern civilization that have proved most progressive and universal, especially science and democracy. From the movement for science and democracy in 1919 to the rising demand for intellectual freedom in 1957, from the protest marches in 1926, which were met with swords and guns, to the demonstrations in 1989, which encountered tanks, we can see how passionately the Chinese people want a just, rational and prosperous society. When it comes to such common aspirations, the Chinese are no different. Like all members of the human race, the Chinese are born with a body and a brain, with passions and with a soul. Thus, they can and must enjoy the same inalienable rights, dignity and liberty as other human beings.

Allow me to draw a historical analogy. Recent propaganda to the effect that “China has its own standards for human rights” bears an uncanny similarity to pronouncements made by our 18th Century rulers, who declared that “China has its own astronomy.” They refused to acknowledge the universal applicability of modern astronomy, or even that it might be of some use in formulating the Chinese calendar. Why? Because the laws of modern astronomy make it clear that the “divine right to rule” claimed by these leaders is a fiction.

The principles of human rights, which also pertain everywhere, make it clear that the “right to rule” claimed by today’s Chinese rulers is just as baseless. This is why rulers from every era, with their special privileges, have opposed the equality inherent in such universal ideas.

The advance of civilization has largely followed the discovery and development of universally applicable concepts and laws. Those who rejected the idea that science embraced all phenomenon were demonstrating their fear of modern civilization. The feudal aristocrats of 200 years ago saw astronomy as a bearer of modern culture and, as a result, ruthlessly persecuted those engaged in its study and practice. During the early Qing dynasty, for example, five astronomers of the Beijing Observatory were put to death.

Equally terrified by the implications of universal human rights, modern-day dictators also resort to murder. But no more than in the case of their feudal predecessors should this be construed as an indication of their strength.

Remember that in the current climate of terror, it may well be that those who are most terrified are those who have just finished killing their fellow human beings. We may be forced to live under a terror today, but we have no fear of tomorrow. The murderers, on the other hand, are not only fearful today, they are even more terrified of tomorrow. Thus we have no reason to lose faith. In the short term, ignorance may dominate through the use of violence, but it will eventually be unable to resist the advance of universal laws. And this will come to pass just as surely as the Earth turns.

Of course, it takes time for the Earth to turn, and, for China, things could take even longer. I know that many young Chinese have dedicated their lives to building our country anew. Since the road to rebirth will be a long one, I fervently hope they will not disrupt their educations, but instead will work even harder to deepen and enrich their knowledge.

What power can nonviolence summon as a means of resisting the violence of guns the world over? There are many strategies of nonviolence, but what is most basic is the force of knowledge. Without knowledge, nonviolence can deteriorate into begging, and history is unmoved by begging. To paraphrase Albert Einstein, only when we stand on the shoulders of the giant of knowledge will we be truly able to change the course of history.

Only with knowledge will we be able to overcome the violence of ignorance at its roots. Only with knowledge will we have the compassion necessary to deliver from their folly those with superstitious faith in the omnipotence of violence.

Many friends have expressed great concern about my current situation. From the bottom of our hearts, my wife and I thank both those we already know and those we have not yet met. Because of the extraordinary circumstances under which we live, I am unable to talk about the details of our lives. But there is perhaps one bit of news that may somewhat lighten your hearts.

I am doing my best to exercise, to their fullest extent, two of my remaining rights: the right to think and the right to inquire. I am continuing my research in astrophysics and since June of this year, I have written two research papers and am now working on a third.

In the field of modern cosmology, the first principle says that the universe has no center, that it has the same properties throughout. Every place in the universe has, in this sense, equal rights. How can the human race, which has evolved in a universe of such fundamental equality, fail to strive for a society without violence and terror? How can we fail to build a world in which the rights due to every human being from birth are respected?

May the blessings of the universe be upon us all.