| The democracy based on the majority rule is considered to be the best democratic system ever and is taken and encouraged in most countries around the world. Few has questioned whether the minority is wrong and the majority is absolutely right. However, we should cut deep into the system, this majority rule is in procedure and this-procedural decision shall not deny the legitimacy of the minority’s right, which includes the right to express their opinions, and the right to get their specific interests recognized in legal and political procedures.The first article of Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen says "Men are born and remain free and equal in rights." Similarly, the laws are not made specifically applying to the majority. When people claim their rights, the key point is that the rights itself is legitimate and rational rather than that the majority ask for the rights. In the democratic theory based on the majority rule, the decision of the majority naturally has the legitimacy and rationality. However,it requires the verification of the legitimacy of the majority’s decision in a country ruled by law.It is necessary to dismiss the irrational part of the democratic thoughts because it does not satisfy the modern concept of rule by law.This will help the establishment of the connection between democracy and rule by law can be built both in theory and in function,In fact, democracy’s self-correction is just the basic requirement of rule by law, while rule by law is developed from the self-correction of democracy. Therefore, nowadays in a society ruled by law, we should not only care about the right of the majority,but also the minority’s. It is delighted the great thinker Dworkin has noticed this problem. He always believed that everyone deserves a right to choose their way of life. A law without rights is a law without life,so he proposed to contain the public power through the claim of private rights. Dworkin pointed out that "We must distinguish the majority’s rights from the rights enjoyed by the members of the majority". The significance of the personal rights shall not be compared with the realization of the majority’s good wish.Admittedly, in the traditional Chinese culture, personality has long been repressed. Due to the special history condition after the establishment of PRC, the individual rights have been ignored compared with the majority’s rights. After a long time of accumulation, the public power expanded day by day. It is necessary for us to emphasize the individual rights and make the boundary between the individual rights and the public power. Dworkin emphasized "the greatest happiness of the greatest number" can’t take the sacrifice of the minority’s rights for granted. The so-called "public welfare" shall not "show-off" in a fancy makeup at the cost of the minority people. He held to help the minority in economy, to show lenience in politics and to respect them in culture. He also analyzed and discussed the cause of the minority and the legitimacy of their rights. He sought the approach to protect the minority’s rights carefully, tried to make up for the regrets in history and researched how to develop and protect the mechanism. All these are beneficial experience for the solution of the real problems in China.Justice and equity is that is pursued by socialist concept of rule by law. Under the normal condition of market-oriented economy, if one can live in a way as he wishes by his hard work and intelligence, the govemment shall not interfere in him, not to restrict him. If one falls in trouble or poverty due to a birth defect or other acquired reasons than himself, it is necessary to help them without injuring the justice of the whole society. It is the pursuit of the actual justice.In a society ruled by law, the law has no boundary in different groups, and is connected to everyone. Each person deserves the right of legal protection in a legal country. The minority group is also supposed to be the subject of the law whose right cannot be taken as well. However, we must be explicitly in the protection of minority rights at the same time, we can not affect the other rights of the majority. Because it is a supplement to the of fundamental human rights rather than modifying, or any of its wanton expansion is likely to form the majority of "reverse discrimination"... |
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