1st Edition

Debating Human Rights Critical Essays from the United States and Asia

Edited By Peter Van Ness Copyright 1999
    304 Pages
    by Routledge

    304 Pages
    by Routledge

    Human rights debates can provoke strong reactions, particularly among people of different cultural backgrounds. The debate over Asian values and the use of human rights diplomacy are the most obvious manifestations of divisions between Asia and the West and reflect particular world views and historical legacies.
    In this new book, scholars from the United States and several Asian countries debate fundamental issues such as 'Asian values', 'peaceful evolution' and cultural imperialism. Provocative and challenging essays analyse the debate between East and West, presenting critical perspectives on globalization and human rights diplomacy.
    Debating Human Rights is an original contribution to a vital area of debate. It presents a uniquely wide diversity of perspectives on controversial issues and demonstrates how scholars and activists who view the world very differently can nonetheless move these debates forward in a search for common ground.

    Acknowledgements. Contributors. Introduction. Issues in Dispute From Human Rights to Human Dignity Chandra Muzzaffar. The Human Rights Debate in a era of Globalization: Hegemony of Discourse. Nikhil Aziz . Asia as a Fount of Universal Human Rights Edward Friedman . An Asia Perspective on Human Rights and Freedom of the Press Kishore Mahbubani . Humnan Rights in Greater China . East Meets West: Human Rights in Hong Kong Linda Butenhoff . Developmentalism and China's Human Rights Policy Michael J. Sullivan . Human Rights as Identities: Difference and Discrimination in Taiwan's China Policy Shih Chihyu . Women's Rights . Reinventing International Law: Women's Rights as Human Rights in the International Community Radhika Coomaraswamy . From Vienna ti Beijing: Women's Human Rights Activism ans the Human Rights Community Manisha Desai . Human Rights and INternational Relations Human Rights and Developmnent Aid: Japan after the ODA Charter. Hoshino Eiichi . Human Rights Problems and Current Sino-American Relations Zhu Feng . From Judge to Participant: The United Sates as Champion of Human Rights Daniel Wessner . Conclusion.

    Biography

    Peter Van Ness is associate professor at the Graduate School of International Studies, University of Denver, and research associate, Contemporary China Centre, Australian National University.