The HRUG regular seminar on “What are Human Rights concerned with – the Universal Human Being, the Social/Class Question or Wokeism?” was successfully held on December 1, 2023. The seminar was chaired by Joe Finnerty (social policy analyst, School of Applied Social Studies, University College Cork, Republic of Ireland) . Prof. Peter Herrmann and Associate Prof. Li Juan, who are researchers at CSU Human Rights Center, and Prof. Mehmet Okyayuz (professor of political science at Middle East Technical University, Turkey) shared and reported in the discussion. And doctoral students of Middle East Technical University, Ankara University and Central South University Human Rights Center participated in this discussion. The seminar mainly focused on the relationship between the universal human rights and social/class issues.
Professor Mehmet Okyayuz firstly discussed the historical evolution of human rights, the impacts of social class relations and political development on human rights and their importance. According to Professor Mehmet Okyayuz, the understanding of the universality of human rights requires to establish connections among politics, law and society, and also identifies the socially determined content. In the western societies, the politico-legal abstraction of human rights expressions is gradually dominated by the special interests expressed by minorities. So it is suggested to adopt a more comprehensive and effective approach to dealing with issues about human rights.
Associate Professor Li Juan emphasized that the particularity of human rights was not in conflict with the universality of human rights. Due to the diversity among and within human groups, the rights of particular groups should be protected. She argued that the capacities and values of individuals were realized through social cooperation. Given that human rights are affected by social interactions and relationships, there are differences in the development of capacities between people as individuals and people as a group, which ultimately require diverse protection.
Professor Peter Herrmann discussed the link between the concept of human rights and social relationships and changes. He believed that with the development of neo-colonial strategies, a paradoxical situation has been established. On the one hand, definitions of human rights issues emerge within a society and among different societies. On the other hand, some movements claim that “old problems has been solved” and focus the human rights discourse on unspecified or overspecified issues. He emphasized the importance of considering the particular social context in which rights were recognized and realized, and pointed out the challenges faced in advocating for the rights of individuals in marginalized groups.
In the comment part, Professor Joe Finnerty questioned the three presenters on “Where is the development of human rights discourse going?” Professor Mehmet Okyayuz expressed concerns about the limitations of current articulation of human rights and its disconnections from the reality. Associate Professor Li Juan argued that minorities may still face challenges in exercising specific rights, such as the significant challenges faced by the elderly as a vulnerable group in the digital age. Professor Peter Herrmann thought that when we talk about human rights, we are talking about human beings as social beings. Therefore, human rights need to be understood in the social development.
2023年12月1日，HRUG定期研讨会之“人权关注什么——普遍的人类、社会/阶级问题还是觉醒主义?”主题会议顺利召开。本次研讨会由爱尔兰国立科克大学应用社会研究学院政策分析家Joe Finnerty主持，中南大学人权研究中心研究员Peter Herrmann教授、土耳其中东科技大学政治学Mehmet Okyayuz教授、中南大学人权研究中心研究员黎娟副教授进行分享和汇报，土耳其中东科技大学、土耳其安卡拉大学和中南大学人权研究中心的博士研究生参与了此次讨论。会议主要围绕人权的普遍性与社会问题和阶级问题的关系展开。
Mehmet Okyayuz教授首先讨论了人权的历史演变、社会阶级关系和政治发展对人权的影响及其重要性。Mehmet Okyayuz教授认为，理解人权的普遍性一方面需要建立政治-法律与社会之间的联系，另一方面则需要确定社会决定的内容，西方社会中人权表述的政治法律抽象性逐渐由少数群体表达的特殊利益主导，建议采取更全面和有效的方法处理人权问题。
黎娟副教授强调人权的特殊性原则与人权的普遍性原则并不冲突。由于人类群体之间和人类群体内部的多样性，应对特殊群体的权利加以保护。她认为，人类个体的能力和价值是通过社会合作实现的，鉴于人权受到社会互动和社会关系的影响，作为个体的人以及作为群体的人的能力发展会存在差异，因而最终需要多样化的保护。
Peter Herrmann教授讨论了人权的概念与社会关系和社会变革的联系。他认为，随着新殖民主义战略的发展，一种矛盾的局面被建立起来。一方面，对人权问题的定义涌现于社会内部和不同社会之间；另一方面，一些运动又声称“旧的问题已经解决”，而把人权讨论集中于未明确或者过度明确了的问题。他强调，考虑承认和实现权利的特定社会背景至关重要，并指出在倡导被边缘化群体的个人权利方面所面临的挑战。
在评议环节，Joe Finnerty教授就“人权话语的发展向何处去”的问题向三位汇报人提问。Mehmet Okyayuz教授表达了对目前人权话语表述中的局限性和与现实脱节的担忧。黎娟副教授认为，少数群体在行使特殊权利时仍可能面临挑战，例如数字时代下老年人作为弱势群体在行使权利时面临的重大挑战。Peter Herrmann教授认为，当我们谈论人权时，我们谈论的是作为社会存在的人，因此需要在社会发展中理解人权。