暗渡陳倉： 中國給國際人權公約的考驗

作者：司馬晉 （香港中文大學全球政治經濟社會科學碩士課程客席副教授 、黃旭東（香港中文大學全球政治經濟社會科學碩士課程講師）

摘要：

1966 年，聯合國通過人權兩公約，堪稱人類最偉大的成就之一。兩公約共有具
同等效力的五種語言版本，中文為其中之一。一般認為，中華人民共和國已簽
署但尚未批准《 公民與政治權利國際公約》 ，而目前已批准《 經濟、社會與文
化權利國際公約》 。然而，1973 年（即中華人民共和國成為中國在聯合國的合
法代表後不久） 卻離奇出現兩公約的中文新版，只要進入聯合國網站，便可看
到這些中文新版，這也是中國政府所認定的「 兩公約」 。與聯合國於 1966 年
通過，且至少經由 161 個其他國家簽署的原版公約相較，上述中文新版包含大
幅修改。實際上，香港和台灣等地以兩公約原版為本地立法，而中國政府所遵
循的修訂版公約與原版差距極大，甚至令人質疑，中國政府是否確實接受聯合
國兩公約規範？比如，原版公約中所賦予的某些權利，在修訂版公約中付之闕
如，而在少數例子中，修訂版公約則是肯認原版公約中並未確立的權利。
以上種種情況，不免讓人懷疑，在國際法律秩序規範中，中國是否能恪盡其
責？與他國簽訂協議或訂定國際公約時，中國的承諾是否可靠？此外，既然中
國人口超過全球五分之一，又讓人心生疑問，聯合國人權兩公約中所規定之原
則是否具有普遍效力並獲得普遍採納？

關鍵字
中國、人權、經濟社會文化權利國際盟約、經濟社會文化權利國際公約、公民
及政治權利國際盟約、公民及政治權利國際公約

China and the International Human Rights Covenants

Author：James D. Seymour（ Adjunct Associate Professor, Masters of Global Political Economy, Faculty of Social Science, Chinese University of Hong Kong） Patrick Y.T. Wong （Lecturer, Masters of Global Political Economy, Faculty of Social Science, Chinese University

Abstract：

In 1966 the United Nations passed the two International Human Rights
Covenants, which were among of the great achievements of mankind. They
were adopted in five equally binding languages, one of which was Chinese.
The People’s Republic of China is generally assumed to have ratified one, and
signed (but not yet ratified) the other. However, in 1973 (soon after the PRC
began representing China in the UN), new Chinese-language versions of each
“Covenant” mysteriously came into existence. These are what one has been
apt to find if one went to the UN’s Web site, and they are what the Chinese
government treats as the “Covenants.” They contain substantial revisions
from what the UN passed in 1966 and have been ratified by at least 161 other
countries. The (real) Covenants are actually domesticized law in places like
Hong Kong and Taiwan, but the revised versions that Beijing follows are so
different that some might question whether China actually embraced either
Covenant. The Covenants grant rights that the revisions would withdraw, and
in a few cases the revisions recognize rights that are absent in the Covenants.
This all gives rise to the question of whether China is a responsible actor
within the international legal order, and whether she is a reliable partner
when it comes to entering into agreements with other countries or acceding
to international conventions. Given that China comprises over one-fifth of
humanity, it also brings into question whether the principles in the Covenants
can claim universal validity and anything like universal acceptance.

Keywords
China, human rights, International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

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