III. Cultural Human Rights
3. Control of Artists and Cultural Activities
Less than three hours into the ninth Beijing Independent Film Festival's curtain-raising on August 18, 2012, the event was forcibly brought to a halt when the movie projector was put out of commission and the arts world members and supporters in attendance driven out by Party authorities. The art world vociferously criticized this affair. 104 Yet the 2011 festival was suppressed by authorities in a similar manner.105
The Chinese government's control of dissidents has not loosened a bit as its international influence has grown. For example, the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize winner, the important pro-democracy dissident Liu Xiao-bo, has not been able to receive his award because he is a prisoner of the state. 106 Since the prize announcement, Liu's wife, Liu Jia, has been under house arrest herself. 107 This case makes Communist authorities´ restrictions of the freedoms of dissidents within Chinese borders evident.
Liu Xiao-bo refuses to leave China after his prison term ends in 2020 because he wishes to preserve his status as a dissident; others who have become expatriates have gradually lost their authority to oppose the government while abroad.108
In contrast to 2010 Nobel winner Liu's suffering, however, the government openly celebrated and extolled Mo Yan for receiving the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2012, showing how closely intertwined it is with a so-called “patriotic writer.＂ 109 When Mo Yan was asked about Liu Xiao-bo's imprisonment after receiving his prize, his response to this sensitive question was
relatively reserved.110
From this, one can see the government's pressure on the cultural sphere.
This has not changed even as the economy has been opened up and reformed.
Somehow affording the cultural world more free space, defending dissidents´
rights, and creating a win-win situation for all in the international arena is a goal that must be worked toward in the future.
IV. Conclusion
By the standards of the UN outlined above, the China of 2012 has much room for improvement on educational human rights. With respect to the government's guarantee of its citizens´ fundamental right to receive education, including the aspects of availability, accessibility, acceptability, and adaptability, there are still many cases of educational resource shortages, limits on the usage of education, tuition disparity and excessive school fees, and systemic inflexibility.
Whether it's high tuition or migrant children's difficulties in attaining education, primary education, which should be compulsory and free to all, must be improved.
Availability signifies giving students of each gender and every ethnic group a safe and secure school environment. Discrimination, however, is robbing girls of opportunities. Meanwhile, students with disadvantaged backgrounds often have no way of receiving fair educational opportunities because they live so far from the place of their household registration.
In secondary and vocational education, varied and flexible curricula and learning styles are still hard to come by. Vocational education especially needs to address inequalities of opportunity stemming from several factors, including gender, previous unemployment or withdrawal from school, status as a migrant worker's child or refugee, or physical disability.
Although admissions to higher education are increasing, the quality of tertiary schools is uneven. Hence, the competition to enter Beijing or Tsinghua University is fierce, and the effect of yawning socioeconomic and urban-rural gaps on students´ opportunities is climbing.
Flexible curricula and supporting measures to meet the educational needs of students with different social and cultural backgrounds are too few. Basically, there is still no way to meet the needs of students who study differently. In other words, although China is called an educational powerhouse, basic structural elements of school systems, such as reasonable public subsidies of the cost of education, restriction of teaching positions to qualified, certified teachers, appropriate curricula, and educational resources, are still painfully lacking in many places because of resource maldistribution and lack of transparency. This leads to poor educational performance and a lack of equity of opportunity on a national level.
Turning to the educational freedom of parents and guardians on behalf of their children, for the time being, school choice is dependent on a household's economic means. Respect for minority ethnicities and religions must still be strengthened on all levels. In particular, although there is a special education system, remedial measures for over-education and discrimination are clearly insufficient.
Due to the Higher Education Law, universities are under the university president responsibility system, meaning the principal is subject to the campus's Communist Party leadership. Thus, in addition to the currents of the market economy, universities are under both an administrative bureaucracy and the party authority. They are especially limited by the new institutional evaluation standards, which indirectly influence academic freedom and self-regulation.
Finally, when it comes to school management, personal dignity and student rights are not sufficiently protected, with public humiliations of students and various
legal violations occasionally not being dealt with appropriately.
Turning to cultural human rights, as noted above the UN has called for every country to“recognize the right of everyone: (a) to take part in cultural life; (b) to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications; (c) to benefit from the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.＂ It has also encouraged the protection of minority groups´ culture and religion, the recognition of each area's cultural identity, and efforts to restore cultural roots. In all these areas, China's development is visibly limited.
Whether it's respecting minority culture, guaranteeing freedom of religion, or allowing Internet and media freedom, government policy is applying a high amount of negative pressure. The mainland has long been ruled by the Communist Party of China, which suppresses any grassroots organization which it considers a threat to its monopoly on authority.
In comparison to the last few years, 2012 saw the Chinese government deliberately stifle more religious and cultural news reports. Hence, this report could only source Falun Gong and Western news organizations for its observation and analysis in these areas, and locals´ and insiders´ perspectives could not be included. This has become an annual dilemma for writers of the Cultural Human Rights Report, and the information available causes the evaluation to skew negative. This limitation, which is caused by the government's deliberate blockade of relevant information, itself shows that cultural human rights in mainland China have room for improvement.111
(Translated by William Franco; Reviewed by the Author)
Notes
1 http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-international- agenda/right-to-education/
2 http://www.unesco.org/new/en/education/themes/leading-the-international- agenda/right-to-education/normative-action/standard-setting/)
3 http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml
4 http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001331/133113e.pdf
5 http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001331/133113e.pdf
6 Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. 2008 China Human Rights Report:
Educational and Cultural Human Rights. Taipei: Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, 2008. Page 138.
7 Francioni, F. and Scheinin, M. (eds.). Cultural Human Rights, V-VI . The Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill NV, 2008.
8 Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. 2008 China Human Rights Report:
Educational and Cultural Human Rights. Taipei: Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, 2008. Page 138.
9 Li Ya-nan. “Henan prohibits kindergartens from holding special classes with extra tuition fees.＂ Xinhua, 27 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/05-27/3893698.shtml
10 Xiao Yuan-yuan. “Government circulates uniform tuition standard.＂ China News, 16 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-16/3893698.
shtml
11 Li Jie-yan. “Education system sees another ｀money for nothing´
scandal.＂ China Youth Daily, 6 Jun 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/06-06/3941168.shtml
12 Zhang Song. “Shaanxi elementary school principal suspected of scarfing food
subsidies for non-existent students.＂ Xi-an Evening News, 13 Jun 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/06-13/3959767.shtml
13 L i J i e - y a n . “ E d u c a t i o n s y s t e m s e e s a n o t h e r ｀ m o n e y f o r nothing´scandal…＂
14 Xie Miao-feng and Wang Jun. “Media investigates kindergarten admissions:
resources few, tuition steep.＂ The Southern Daily, 26 Jun 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/06-26/3986071.shtml
15 Cong Min. “Inequalities steep in preschool education; parents forced to become ｀child slaves.´＂ The Workers' Daily, 29 Jun 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/06-29/3995973.shtml
16 Xie Miao-feng and Wang Jun. “Media investigates kindergarten admissions…＂
17 Shao Yan-fei and Hu Feng-sheng. “Female Zhejiang teacher's abuse of student imprisoned for disturbing the peace.＂ China News, 25 Oct 2012.
http://china.huanqiu.com/local/2012-10/3215382.html
18 Liu Li. “60% of Chinese kindergarten teachers lack certification; certification system ineffective.＂ The Chinese Radio Network, 28 Oct 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/10-28/4282350.shtml
19 Huang Li-na. “Guangzhou to invest 2.3 billion yuan to create public kindergartens and give each poor student 1300 yuan scholarship.＂ The Yangcheng Evening News, 17 Oct 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/10-17/4255259.shtml
20 Gui Yuan. “Shandong promulgates clearly defined kindergarten tuition standards.＂ The Chinese Radio Network, 26 Oct 2012. http://www.chinanews.
com/edu/2012/10-26/4280399.shtml
21 Jin Zhen. “Don´t make elementary school admissions so test-dependent.＂The Xinmin Evening News, 21 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.
com/edu/2012/05-21/3904387.shtml
22 Li Ya-nan. “Henan prohibits kindergartens from holding special classes with extra tuition fees…＂
23 Chang Ya-ge. “Preschools´ conversion to quasi-elementary schools puts pressure on actual elementary schools.＂ The China Education Newspaper, 21 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-21/3904244.shtml
24 Jin Dan-dan. “Ministry of Education releases document against preschool over-education; addition and subtraction at age 6 acceptable.＂ The Today Morning Express, 29 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-29/3921750.shtml
25 Li Ya-nan. “Henan prohibits kindergartens from holding special classes with extra tuition fees…＂
26 h t t p : / / w w w. m o e . e d u . c n / p u b l i c f i l e s / b u s i n e s s / h t m l f i l e s / m o e / moe_2803/200907/49979.html
27 Yu Wan and Chou Yi. “｀Agitated´ primary school teacher throws pen at student, injures student's cornea.＂ The China News, 27 Apr 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-27/3850961.shtml
28 Lu Jian-guo and Lu Hai-long. “Nantong teacher unintentionally tears student's ear, necessitating 5 stitches.＂ China News. 12 Apr 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-12/3814791.shtml
29 Chen Xin-yu and Yang Bo. “Boys who didn´t complete homework have rear ends beaten by female cadres; parents suspect teacher authorized them.＂
The Guangzhou Daily, 19 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-19/3830135.shtml
30 Pan Lin, Li Pei-pei, and Bai Yang. “Student who forgot red scarf has rear end struck 100 times with iron pipe by female teacher.＂ The Yangcheng Evening News, 11 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/fz/2012/04-11/3811796.shtml
31 http://www.china.org.cn/english/government/207410.htm
32 Di Dong-na. “80% of students in disadvantaged areas don't have access to musical instruments, reports indicate.＂ The Beijing News, 12 Apr 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-12/3813817.shtml
33 Cui Xiao-yu and Wang Yong. “Primary school sends students to pick tea leaves during class time; wages go towards teachers´ benefits.＂ CN West, 21 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-21/3836528.shtml
34 Kong Xiang-zhi and Gu Hong-ming. “Educational Issues for Children of Migrant Laborers from Rural Villages.＂ Shanxi University of Finance and Economics Journal, Volume 26, Issue 6 (2004). Wang Guang-hua and Liu Yong-hong. “Education of Migrant Workers´ Children: Current Circumstances and Analysis of Countermeasures.＂ Panzhihua University Journal, Volume 25, Issue 1 (2008).
35 Yang Du . “Let migrant workers ｀ children get an education!＂
The China Times, 14 Nov 2012. http://news.chinatimes.com/
forum/11051402/112012111400498.html
36 Zhao Yu-fei and Mao Chen. “Withdrawal fees for Chongqing schools persistently high, even surpassing 10,000 RMB.＂ Xinhua, 6 Aug 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/08-06/4085415.shtml
37 Li Guo and Qin Li. “Major Chongqing secondary schools have high barriers to entry; withdrawal after choosing school can cost 10,000 RMB.＂ The Workers' Daily, 10 Aug 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/08-10/4098512.shtml
38 She Zhong-ming. “High withdrawal fees suspected to be asking price for admission.＂ The West China Metropolis Daily, 7 Aug 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/08-07/4088714.shtml
39 Wu Rui-dong. “How could high withdrawal fees not be illegal? The unspoken
rules.＂ The Guangzhou Daily, 7 Aug 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/08-07/4088356.shtml
40 Qi Yong. “Henan education department vows to put a stop to high school's illegal remedial class fees.＂ China News, 9 Aug 2012. http://www.chinanews.
com/edu/2012/08-09/4095184.shtml
41 Wang Fei-fei. “Why ｀First Tuition, Then Admission´? A university admissions predicament waiting to be solved.＂ Xinhua, 19 Aug 2012.
42 Hu Su. “Fujian to significantly reduce cost of primary and secondary school supplies.＂ Xinhua, 9 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-09/3876051.shtml
43 Wang Si-hai. “Beijing to provide primary and secondary students all the school supplies they need free of charge.＂ Xinhua, 23 May 2012. http://www.
chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-24/3914168.shtml
44 Li Xin-suo. “Shanxi orders economically developed areas to provide disadvantaged students school supplies for free.＂ China News, 24 May 2012.
http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-24/3914168.shtml
45 Li Xin-suo. “Shanxi orders economically developed areas to provide…＂
46 Wang Si-hai. “Beijing forbids compulsory schools from charging ｀resource borrowing´ fees on out-of-province students, school choice fees.＂ Xinhua, 10 May 2012.
47 Song Xi-qun. “Adolescent sex education deficient in China; not integrated into course curricula.＂ The Guangming Daily, 24 Sep 2012. http://edu.
qq.com/a/20120924/000048.htm
48 Wu Bo. “With college exams coming, Hangzhou No. 1 High forbids male and female students from being alone together.＂ The Qianjiang Evening News, 5 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-05/3795775.shtml
50 Wang Yan, Sun Ting-ting, and Wang Le-wei. “Secondary schools
force students to cut hair: this pressure is detrimental to their health and development.＂ The Qilu Evening News, 13 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.
com/edu/2012/04-13/3818742.shtml
50 Dan Shi-bing. “Why can the educational authorities drive a girl who doesn't get a haircut to her death?＂ The Xi’an Evening News, 18 Apr 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-18/3827213.shtml
51 Lin Yuan. “South China Normal University freshmen's military training haircuts and orders to get haircuts continue.＂ The Yangcheng Evening News, 7 Sep 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/09-07/4167817.shtml
52 Zhao Jing. “Western Development Project gives scholarships to 2,080 Qinghai students.＂ The Qinghai Daily, 3 Oct 2012. http://www.qhnews.com/
newscenter/system/2012/10/03/010907329.shtml
53 Wang Se. “Xinjiang expands free textbooks program to cover 2.37 million primary and secondary students.＂ China Education, 8 Oct 2012. http://jijiao.
jyb.cn/xw/201210/t20121008_512784.html
54 Ma Xue-ling. “State Council decides to expand free secondary vocational education.＂ China News, 10 Oct 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/10-10/4238182.shtml
55 Zhou Rui. “Tsing Hua University sends 200 volunteer teachers to Xinjiang, Xizang.＂ China News, 7 Jul 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/07-07/4015833.shtm
56 Cui Bin. “Four Shandong agencies call for end to admissions fees like school choice fees.＂ The Qilu Evening News, 6 Jul 2012. http://www.chinanews.
com/edu/2012/07-05/4010517.shtml
57 Yu Zhong-ning. “Frequent university plagiarism wrecks academic integrity.＂
The Workers' Daily, 30 Mar 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/03-30/3784829.shtml
58 Feng Guo-dong. “Professor found guilty of plagiarizing student´s graduation design project to win major international award.＂ Sina News Beijing, 12 Sep 2012. http://news.sina.com.tw/article/20120911/7823666.
html...Mainland News Group. “Plagiarist professor: did he win international award by stealing student´s idea?＂ The World Journal, 12 Sep 2012.
http://www.worldjournal.com/view/aChinanews/20091714/article-%E5%89%BD%E7%AB%8A%E5%B8%AB-%E6%8A%84%E5%AD%B8%
E7%94%9F%E9%BB%9E%E5%AD%90%E7%8D%B2%E5%9C%8B%E9%
9A%9B%E5%A4%A7%E7%8D%8E%EF%BC%9F-?instance=ch2。
59 Liang Xiao-fei. “Thesis ghostwriting site openly displays prices; business thriving.＂ Xinhua, 22 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-22/3837280.shtml
60 “Survey of private thesis ghostwriting business reveals total lack of oversight.＂ Sina News, 22 Apr 2012.
61 Zhu Jian-hua. “Excellent professors let slip that professorial evaluations do not value teaching, so they devote little energy to it.＂ The Changjiang Daily, 28 Aug 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/08-28/4139859.shtml
62 Xiao Yu-hen. “Why don't professors want to teach undergraduates?＂
The Yangcheng Evening News, 24 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/04-24/3842887.shtml
63 Qu Jian-cheng and Wu Jiang-long. “Wuhan University requires professors to
｀come home´ and teach undergraduates.＂ The Changjiang Daily, 11 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/04-11/3811141.shtml
64 Ye Tie-qiao. “City students have 18 times better chance than country students of getting into university, research says.＂ The China Youth Daily, 28 May 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/05-28/3918593.shtml
65 Ma Hai-yan. “China gives scholarships to 10,000 undergrads from poor
regions every year.＂ China News, 23 Apr 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/
edu/2012/04-23/3840267.shtml
66 He Wei-ling and Wang Hong-xiang. “Hunan women´s college´s newrule: skirts must go below the knee; strap dresses cannot be worn on campus. “ Jinqian News, 14 Sep 2012. http://news.gog.com.cn/
system/2012/09/14/011646587.shtml
67 Yang Bo. “Secondary school found to threaten female students with suspension if they don´t get haircuts; principal denies.＂ The Guangzhou Daily. 28 Sep 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/09-28/4220489.
shtml
68 Lin Yuan, He Wei-jie, and Xie Ze-kai. “Almost 80% of South China Normal University students oppose mandatory haircuts for military training.＂ The Guangming Daily and The Yangcheng Evening News, 5 Sep 2012. http://edu.
gmw.cn/2012-09/05/content_4989615.htm
69 Wu De. “Several universities set higher admissions standards for women than for men; lawyers call it gender discrimination.＂ The Beijing News, 11 Jul 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/07-11/4023089.shtml。
70 Ran Yu. “Minimum scores for admission differ by gender; initiatives fresh but fairness distant.＂ The West China Metropolis Daily, 9 Jul 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/07-09/4019379.shtml
71 Tong Ji-qing. “Double admissions standard contrary to gender justice.＂ The China Women's News Daily, 16 Jul 2012.
72 Wu De. “Several universities set higher admissions standards for women than for men…＂
73 Wu De. “Several universities set higher admissions standards for women than for men…＂
74 “Nude exam: Why did female medical students become sheep?＂ The
Guangzhou Daily, 27 Jul 2012. http://www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/07-26/4060591.shtml
75 Hong Wan. “Nanhua University responds that those responsible for female students´ ｀nude exam´ dealt with severely.＂ RedNet, 29 Jul 2012. http://
www.chinanews.com/edu/2012/07-29/4065693.shtml
76 Hong Wan. “Nanhua University responds that those responsible for female students´…＂
77 Ren Kai-wen. “WaPo: Outspoken Chinese bishop Ma Da-qin detained.＂ The Epoch Times, 13 Jul 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/12/7/13/n3634608.
htm
78 Tang Ming. “CPC Politics and Law Commission knuckles down on people of faith to ensure stability ahead of Party Congress.＂ The Epoch Times, 11 Jul 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/12/7/11/n3632645.htm
79 Cheng Po. “Falun Gong News Review (2012/2/20-3/4).＂ The Epoch Times, 5 Mar 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/12/3/5/n3530523.htm
80 Gao Jing. “Tsering Woeser, Tibetan writer in Beijing, prohibited from receiving award.＂ The Epoch Times, 2 Mar 2012. http://www.epochtimes.
com/b5/12/3/2/n3527805.htm
81 Gao Jing. “18-year old Tibetan man self-immolates in protest of CPC policies toward his people.＂ The Epoch Times, 6 Mar 2012. http://www.epochtimes.
com/b5/12/3/6/n3531980.htm
82 Zhang Dong (ed.) “NYT: Tibetan monk: self-immolations all caused by cruelty of CPC rule.＂ The Epoch Times, 5 Jun 2012. http://www.epochtimes.
com/b5/12/6/5/n3605121.htm
83 Woeser, Tsering. “Fire extinguishers and apartheid.＂ The Epoch Times, 22 Jun 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/12/6/22/n3618688.htm
84 Woeser, Tsering. “Fire extinguishers and apartheid…＂
85 Woeser, Tsering. “Fire extinguishers and apartheid…＂
86 “Chinese government prohibits foreign travelers from entering Tibet.＂ Voice of America, republished by the Epoch Times, 7 Jun 2012. http://epochtimes.
com/b5/12/6/7/n3606558.htm
87 Ren Kai-wen. “WaPo: Outspoken Chinese bishop Ma Da-qin detained.＂ The Epoch Times, 13 Jul 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/12/7/13/n3634608.
htm
88 Ren Kai-wen. “WaPo: Outspoken Chinese bishop Ma Da-qin detained…＂
89 Ye Qing-qing. “Urumqi summer Koran school for children investigated and closed.＂ The Epoch Times, 11 Jul 2012. http://www.epochtimes.com/
b5/12/7/11/n3632675.htm
90 Shen Yu-qing. “Xinjiang public servants must sign pledge not to have faith or enter mosques.＂ The Epoch Times, 23 Mar 2012. http://www.epochtimes.
com/b5/12/3/23/n3548036.htm
91 Liu Xiao-zhen. “Nine more Uyghurs convicted of inciting separatism by
91 Liu Xiao-zhen. “Nine more Uyghurs convicted of inciting separatism by