少数民族权利保障的原则与模式——基于1991～2014年15部人权白皮书的分析

Protection of the Rights of Minority Ethnic Groups:Principles and Modes——An Analysis of 15 Human Rights White Papers Released from 1991 to 2014

少数民族问题是一个全球性的问题,尤其是对地缘及国际政治意义上的大国来说更是如此,如人口构成极其复杂的中国、移民众多的美国以及西欧诸国等。随着全球化的深入,几乎任何国家都难以保持为单一种族、民族或族群的纯粹'民族国家'。在国家的政治、经济、社会、法律等不同领域,少数民族问题都发挥着不同的作用,产生各异的影响。国家和社会的进步与发展,依赖于理念的普适和制度的合理。对少数民族问题的反思需要从制度和理念两方面进行。

Human rights should be accessible to all;nonetheless,there is variation among individuals in terms of their access to human rights,due to the difference between them.A case in point is minority groups,as the protection of whose human rights is an important part of the efforts to safeguard human rights and is increasingly becoming a matter of international concern.In China,the protection of minority ethnic groups’human rights is a crucial part of China’s human rights commitments,and how to further improve the human rights conditions of minority ethnic groups has become a significant topic in the studies on the human rights of minority ethnic groups.In 1991,the Chinese government released its first white paper on human rights,and since then has made it a rule to release such documents on a regular basis.By the year 2014,a total of 15 humanrights-themed white papers had been published,which presents China’s understanding of and attitude toward human rights,and demonstrate China’s achievements and experiences in promoting human rights.In particular,all those white papers adopt the protection of the rights of China,s minority ethnic groups as a key topic,and from the perspectives of history,politics,law and society,describe China’s efforts to protect and guarantee such rights on the basis of illustrative examples and solid data and outline the human rights conditions of China’s ethnic minorities.In view of this,this paper analyzed the 15 human rights white papers released by the State Council Information Office from 1991 to 2014,and reviewed the improvement in the protection of ethnic minorities’rights during the same period.A solid approach to human rights protection must combine equal protection for all and special protection for specific groups,and the protection of the human rights of minority ethnic groups is no exception.China provides universal protection to the civil and political rights,economic,social and cultural rights of its minority ethnic groups,and on the other hand,it also offers special or prioritized protection of the rights of ethnic minorities.Such protection is based on a number of essential principles,among which the principle of equality is the primary guiding principle while the principles of indiscriminate equal protection,special protection and legal differential treatment are manifestations of such guiding principle.To put it more specifically,the principle of indiscriminate protection means that members of minority ethnic groups,as citizens under domestic law,are entitled to indiscriminate equal protection given the fact that human rights protection is universal and general in nature;the principle of special protection,in turn,means that while equal and indiscriminate protection lays the foundation for the protection of human rights of all citizens of a nation-state,ethnic minority groups,compared with the majority ethnic group in the country,they are still disadvantaged in many aspects in terms competitiveness and access to opportunities.In view of this,it is reasonable that the law should offer special protection to ethnic minorities.The legal differential treatment principle,in turn,means that whether equal protection(which derives from the requirement that human rights protection must be general)and special protection(which is based on the unique ethnic characteristics and possible disadvantages of minorities)are adequate remains a question to be solved.Judging by actual practice,in spite of equal protection and special protection,minority ethnic groups,most of whom live in remote and poverty-stricken areas,may nonetheless face some disadvantages,such as relative backwardness in terms of politics,economic development,social development,and educational attainment.To eliminate such backwardness may take a fairly long period of time,and during the process,the state has the obligation to support the minority ethnic groups.And such support,when it is sanction by law,will then be manifested by the legal differential treatment offered to such minority ethnic groups.Judging by China’s experience in protecting minority rights,it can be seen that China followed the equality principle and placed special emphasis on special or targeted protection on the basis of universal protection.Arrangements for the protection of minority rights are mainly made in the form of government policies;further,within the framework of laws,the Chinese government is also working to bring rights protection in line with the rule of law.Such a combination of policies,which are more flexible in nature,and laws,which are more stable in nature,ensures timely and comprehensive protection of rights.Such integration of the passiveness of laws and activeness of policies sets a proper bottom line for rights protection on the one hand,and paves the way for better and more pro-active rights of rights.China,s twothronged approach to rights protection that combines laws and government policies not only suits China’s reality but also is conducive to achieving the ultimate goal of achieving rule-of-law-based governance.On a higher level,such an approach to rights protection also embodies China’s efforts in achieving justice and equality throughout the country,and boosts the efforts to achieve the objective of ensuring human rights protection with Chinese characteristics.