China’s totalitarian system threatens justice on a global scale, says a renowned human rights activist.

The next human rights revolution

by Chen Guangcheng

As long as a totalitarian regime still exists in human society, it means that humanity has not passed the historical stage of barbarism. A totalitarian regime is a product of the evil potential in human nature, and the greatest obstacle in humanity’s march toward justice and civilization.

A common manifestation of totalitarianism is to spare no barbaric means to harm people, hinder people’s development and progress, and even threaten humanity’s culture, civilization, and universal values for the sake of one’s own personal interests. Therefore, in the globalized world in which we live today, if one thinks that the existence of a totalitarian system is the private matter of some other country and ought to be resolved by the people of that country, one cannot be more wrong. This is not a view that shows wisdom and foresight.

Technological advances have made the world ever smaller. The interrelations between nations have become closer. Intercontinental missiles can fly around the globe, and nuclear weapons could destroy humanity several times over. A click of the computer keyboard by a hacker from China’s cyber espionage unit 61398 in Shanghai will trigger a response from the Pentagon in the United States. After some Chinese people protested in front of the United Nations in Manhattan, their family members in China were “invited to drink tea” and threatened by the secret police.

When dealing with a government practicing violence and deception, if you don’t try to influence it with your universal values, such as freedom, equality, democracy, and constitutionalism, you are very likely to be affected by the wickedness of this government. As a result of such insidious erosion, your heart becomes distorted, and you start to set limits for yourself and give up your principles. It is evident that the humanitarian and human rights issues that happen in any part of the world will invade and become the content of our lives, and may even directly affect our lives.

In an age of information explosion, it is impossible for you, me, or anyone else to stay away from the world. If someone is convicted for defending human dignity and universal values, every one of us has inescapable responsibilities.

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