Abstract：Since the 1980s, economic globalization has been accelerating, international relations have become closer, and competition among major powers has become more intense. Global justice is a hot topic in the academic circles, and cosmopolitanism is one important perspective within this discourse. The world today is characterized by institutional diversity, cultural diversity and value diversity. Different peoples and nations have different national and individual interests, which are often in conflict with each other. Due to the absence of a world government above national sovereignty, the feasibility of cosmopolitanism is questionable. Cosmopolitanism does not challenge the basic assumptions of capitalist states but abstracts capitalism from the real world, without deeply reflecting on the logic of the world economy dominated by transnational capital. This theory may appear idealistic but it is substantively dangerous in ideology, as it harbors the liberal presumption of “human rights above sovereignty” and represents another version of Western universal values. Of course, the issue of justice exists on a global scale. We need a more reasonable theory of global justice. However, it is not a cosmopolitanism but rather an international pluralism.
In recent years, the Chinese government and people have confronted the common challenges faced by human society and put forward the Common Values of Humanity and the concept of a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind, establishing a political conception that is oriented towards the world and the future in line with the characteristics of globalization and global governance. This conception of global justice replaces the idea of “globalized liberal justice value” and has achieved a profound transformation in the understanding of the humanity itself. The Chinese perspective on global justice includes a series of viewpoints proposed by China to respond to globalization and global governance. It differs significantly from cosmopolitanism and overcomes its shortcomings.
The conception of global justice in the Chinese perspective expresses a cautious optimism towards globalization. As a rising powerful developing country, China advocates for peaceful development and win-win cooperation, seeks to resolve international disputes through consultation, jointly addresses human challenges, pursues common values of the humanity, and builds a community with a shared future for mankind. We recognize the moral importance of nation-states, respect national sovereignty and core interests, and urge sovereign states to assume the prior responsibility of the interests of their own people. Global justice should be rooted in the common values derived from the local experiences of each country rather than any forms of universal values. It should be based on the common interests of each country and the overall interests of the humanity rather than being a political guise for any individual country to safeguard unilateral interests or interfere in other countries’ internal affairs. Global justice responds to the common concerns of the humanity and strives for broader national cooperation and political mobilization.
Under the guidance of the common values of the humanity, we will reconstruct the blueprint for global justice. Firstly, the common values of the humanity criticize the idea of universal values. We need to distinguish the pursuit of a good life by the peoples of the Western countries from universal values. We also need to view the achievements of the Western countries in pursuing human values dialectically, engage in dialogues in the field of global justice, and strive to establish a global justice consensus that includes the Western countries and their people. Secondly, common values of the humanity acknowledge that different nations have different social systems and ideologies, and respect the different modernization paths of different nations. It guides the people of all countries to form an effective mechanism for consultation and cooperation in dealing with values, interests, and concerns at different levels. Finally, it also recognizes the core position of basic human rights. All modern democratic countries acknowledge that every citizen enjoys equal basic human rights, and China is no exception. However, we must be vigilant against the idea of “human rights above sovereignty”. Global justice is not an international political tool to subvert the regimes of other countries. The achievement of global justice generally cannot come at the expense of intervening in the internal affairs of other countries. Even if global justice is the goal of development for the human society, the maintenance of the integrity and independence of sovereign states remains unshakable. Of course, it is necessary to criticize and condemn those government regimes that significantly violate human rights. Global justice is not being inactive in the face of worldwide human rights challenges.
There are many controversies over human values. We are willing to engage in dialogues with the Western world to accurately convey our true thoughts. We also have strong theoretical confidence in addressing common challenges and outlining a new blueprint for a global justice based on the common values of the humanity. The Chinese perspective on global justice respects the sovereignty and core interests of independent nations, acknowledges the differences in democratic development among countries, respects the basic human rights of citizens, recognizes the common values of the humanity, respects the history, culture and traditions of all countries, acknowledges the diversity in lifestyles, values and social political systems of different countries. It upholds the overall interests of mankind, responds to the common concerns of mankind and provides a theoretical basis for addressing the numerous challenges faced by mankind in the 21st Century. The realization of this new blueprint will benefit not only the East but also the West and the entire world.
伏佳佳 张国清. 世界主义及其超越——兼论中国视野中的全球正义[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 0, (): 1-.
Fu Jiajia Zhang Guoqing. Cosmopolitanism and Beyond: Global Justice from the View of China. JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 0, (): 1-.
