During the first half of the 20th Century, numerous countries were attracted to communism in various parts of the world. Two such countries are the former Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. Due to historic and geographic reasons, they have played important roles in the economy and politics on a world scale. In terms of area, the USSR was the world’s largest country and it occupies almost one-sixth of the Earth’s land surface. China occupies almost the entire East Asian landmass and represents one-fourteenth of the land area of our planet (britannica.com). Most people assume that the former Soviet Union and China are very similar since they have both been communist. However, there are many important differences between the two.
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was being ruled by Stalin when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was passed in 1948. Stalin’s ruling was characterized by harsh political repression and terror, the Gulag camps were filled with political prisoners. Atheism was enforced and art, science, literature, and education had to follow strict ideological guidelines. The notion of human rights in the former Soviet Union was very different from the one that was prevalent in the West. The Soviets were against the notion of “negative” rights, which were rights of individuals against the government. According to the Soviet system, society as a whole, rather than the individuals, were the ones who benefitted from “positive” rights, which were rights from the government. From their viewpoint, it was the economic and social rights that had to be protected. This included the right to health care, food, housing, education and employment. When the United Nations established the Human Rights Commission in 1945, the U.S.S.R. wanted to make sure that economic and social rights were not relegated to second-class status, and thus decided to not sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. When the U.S.S.R. collapsed in 1991, it was clear that the Soviet system had achieved little in terms of economic and social rights (stanford.edu). Unlike the U.S.S.R., China signed both the UN Charter and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Nonetheless, the Chinese civil war as well as the victory of communism in mainland China led to the un-representation of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations (China’s cautious participation in the UN Human Rights Regime). Although the current constitution of China encompasses a number of civil rights that include free speech, press, worship, the right to trial, and the right to own private property, it is in practice not followed and the judicial system does not provide a means for reviewing new laws. (stanford.edu).
was being ruled by Stalin when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was passed in 1948. Stalin’s ruling was characterized by harsh political repression and terror, the Gulag camps were filled with political prisoners. Atheism was enforced and art, science, literature, and education had to follow strict ideological guidelines. The notion of human rights in the former Soviet Union was very different from the one that was prevalent in the West. The Soviets were against the notion of “negative” rights, which were rights of individuals against the government. According to the Soviet system, society as a whole, rather than the individuals, were the ones who benefitted from “positive” rights, which were rights from the government. From their viewpoint, it was the economic and social rights that had to be protected. This included the right to health care, food, housing, education and employment. When the United Nations established the Human Rights Commission in 1945, the U.S.S.R. wanted to make sure that economic and social rights were not relegated to second-class status, and thus decided to not sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. When the U.S.S.R. collapsed in 1991, it was clear that the Soviet system had achieved little in terms of economic and social rights (stanford.edu). Unlike the U.S.S.R., China signed both the UN Charter and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Nonetheless, the Chinese civil war as well as the victory of communism in mainland China led to the un-representation of the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations (China’s cautious participation in the UN Human Rights Regime). Although the current constitution of China encompasses a number of civil rights that include free speech, press, worship, the right to trial, and the right to own private property, it is in practice not followed and the judicial system does not provide a means for reviewing new laws. (stanford.edu).