Research on Chinese judicial human rights discourse
A statistical analysis based on judicial judgement documents, 2004–2020
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8133306 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Xiaoyi Huang (0009-0002-1636-0214, Southwest University of Political Science & Law, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-26 |
| Publication date | 2026-03-05 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The International Journal of Human Rights (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1364-2987 • E-ISSN: 1744-053X |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/13642987.2026.2637885 |
| OpenAlex | W7133684709 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 14 |
Human rights discourse is an important expression carrier of the concept of human rights. By searching Chinese judicial judgement documents (CJJDs), one can find that judges invoke the term ‘human rights’ for judgement reasoning and argumentation in litigation. As exercisers of public power, how judges express human rights in their decisions reflects China’s attitude toward protecting human rights in the judicial field, the availability of human rights remedies and the development and achievements of the cause of judicial protection of human rights. According to the form and purpose of judges’ invocation of ‘human rights’, it can be typified into five types of Chinese judicial human rights discourse (CJHRD) based on a sample of 751 CJJDs. Analysis of the specific context and content of CJHRD reveals its stability and fundamental principles. An in-depth analysis of the sources of the CJHRD reveals that it has a strong dependence on the human rights provisions or human rights discourse of laws, regulations and human rights documents. Meanwhile, the human rights discourse formed by judges’ use of ‘human rights’ in their reasoning reflects at least four human rights concepts that are recognised by China’s judiciary and transmitted to Chinese citizens through judicial channels.
Human rights · Judgement · Judicial activism · Judicial Independence · Judicial opinion · Statistical analysis · China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance · Judicial and Constitutional Studies · Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research
Vulnerable groups
“Human rights” in the protection of rural women’s land rights and interests in China, 2000–2022
Death Penalty Abolition, the Right to Life, and Necessity
Is there a hierarchy of human rights
Universality of Human Rights and Cultural Diversity
The Politics of International Judicial Appointments
Works in Progress
Human rights’ in judicial judgement of China
Theoretical Foundations for Human Rights
Human Dignity and Judicial Interpretation of Human Rights
Politico-Theological Foundations of Universal Human Rights
Domestic legal traditions and states' human rights practices
| Highly cited | No |
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