Unenumerated Rights Clauses and the System of Restriction on Fundamental Rights——Another Construction Plan for Article 51 of the Constitution of PRC

According to constitutional jurisprudence in China,Article 51 of the Constitution is an unenumerated restrictive clause.Such theoretical construction fails to justify the differentiated restrictions established in the Constitution and makes it difficult to explain the constitutional status of human dignity. Article 51 implies the possibility of other theoretical constructions. It is not an unenumerated restriction clause but an unenumerated rights clause. It aims to provide guarantees for general freedom of action not enumerated in the Constitution rather than restricting fundamental rights. The actual benefit of this kind of theoretical construction lies in that it can establish the basis of the constitutional text for general freedom of action and promote the people’s correct understanding of the model of restriction on fundamental rights established by the Constitution of PRC.