BEIJING, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- As a multi-ethnic country with a long history, China is offering a new perspective on addressing common challenges in modern state governance through its recently enacted law on promoting ethnic unity and progress -- one that seeks unity without imposing uniformity.
The Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law, China's fundamental law governing ethnic affairs, took effect on July 1 to strengthen law-based governance and promote unity and common prosperity among the country's 56 ethnic groups.
China has been ethnically diverse since ancient times, with many groups developing their own unique customs and cultural traditions. For thousands of years, governing such a vast and varied land has presented complex challenges, some of which have even continued into the modern era.
While countries may follow different institutional paths, safeguarding national unity, countering separatism, and protecting the equal rights of all members of society remain common challenges in modern state governance, said Hu Haifeng, director of the Institute of Ethnology at the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences.
Through the new law, China is incorporating its historical experiences and contemporary practices in governing ethnic affairs into a legal framework, with the aim of balancing national unity, regional stability and development, ethnic relations and public security, Hu said.
Drawing on years of field research in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Hu views the legislation as a codification of the country's experience in combating separatism, countering terrorism and extremism, and promoting ethnic unity and progress.
The law expounds on the idea of building a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation. It also sets up institutional safeguards to promote the common national language among different ethnic groups, while respecting and protecting the right to study and use ethnic minority languages.
The law's provisions on equality, ethnic unity and the protection of the rights of ethnic groups are broadly consistent with the core principles of international human rights law. This includes the principles of equality and non-discrimination enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, experts noted.
This "unity with diversity" approach stands in stark contrast to Western models of ethnic governance rooted in nationalism and colonial expansion, as well as a discourse that often views other civilizations through a self-centered, hierarchical lens, said Tian Feilong, vice dean of the law school at Minzu University of China.
According to experts, China's language policies seek to avoid the rigid either-or thinking found in some Western discourse, aiming to find a balance between promoting a common national language and protecting ethnic minority languages and cultures.
Throughout history, countries around the world, including the United States, Britain, France and Japan, have widely adopted policies and institutions to promote a common language, said Zhu Yafeng, a professor at Xinjiang University.
While promoting the use of standard Chinese, China also explicitly stipulates in its Constitution and laws that the rights of ethnic minority groups to learn and use their own languages and scripts shall be respected and protected.
The ethnic unity law stipulates that the state promotes the standardization and digitalization of ethnic languages and scripts, and supports the preservation, collation, research and utilization of ancient books in ethnic minority languages. It also encourages the innovative development of the fine traditional cultures of all ethnic groups.
China's promotion of the national common language in ethnic regions is aimed at better safeguarding the fundamental rights of ethnic minority citizens, including their rights to education, employment, and cultural development, said Hu.
Nyima Phentok, a middle school administrator in Lhasa, capital of Xizang Autonomous Region, said the school's students come from all seven prefecture-level regions of Xizang and speak different Tibetan dialects, making a common language essential for effective communication. The school specifically offers courses of Tibetan language and clubs of Tibetan calligraphy and traditional cultural activities such as playing Tibetan musical instruments.
Padma Choszom, a recent college graduate, said she felt confident speaking standard Chinese during a job interview for an automobile-related position in Xigaze, Xizang. "I was able to communicate smoothly with the HR staff and technical team. I also read materials in standard Chinese about the new energy vehicle industry," said the young woman, who also communicates effortlessly with local colleagues and customers in the Tibetan language.
Promoting a common language need not come at the expense of ethnic languages and cultures, said Penpa Lhamo, a national political advisor and deputy director of the Xizang Academy of Social Sciences.
Greater linguistic connectivity creates more opportunities for education, employment and cultural exchange while ethnic traditions and cultural practices continue to be preserved and passed down.
Local Tibetans observe a rich array of religious and folk traditions throughout the year, including the Shoton Festival, Butter Lamp Festival, Saga Dawa Festival, as well as pilgrimages around sacred lakes and mountains.
Tibetan Buddhist monasteries regularly hold traditional religious activities, including scripture study, debate, empowerment ceremonies and spiritual practice.
To Penpa Lhamo, the protection and preservation of Tibetan and other ethnic minority languages and cultures should go hand in hand with socioeconomic development.
Over one-third of China's ethnic minority population lives in urban areas and ethnically mixed communities. "Every ethnic group can thrive only by opening up to the outside world," said Cheng Yue, who also works for the Xizang Academy of Social Sciences.
The Tibetan people, for example, have never been self-isolated, nor has Xizang ever been an isolated region. The Tibetan script developed under the influence of writing systems outside the region, while numerous Tibetan words were borrowed from standard Chinese, Cheng said. ■
