Reflections on the Rule of Law upon Listening to President Xi
![handle is hein.journals/indjicl4 and id is 553 raw text is:
REFLECTIONS ON THE RULE OF LAW
UPON LISTENING TO PRESIDENT XI
John Prince
Wenzhou-Kean University
E-mail: joprince@kean.edu
In recent years, the Chinese government has made significant rhetorical com-
mitment to the rule of law. Many skeptical observers, however, doubt not only
the current commitment but whether such notions as rule of law even could
take root in China' intellectual soil. A primary cause of this skepticism is a wide-
spread perception that the long-dominant Confucian tradition rejected such an
idea in favor of rule by virtue. The position in this paper is that such skepticism
misunderstands both the nature of the Chinese Confucian tradition' position on
law and what the concept of the rule of law actually entails. Clarifying a more
effective understanding of the nature of law, what this article calls thenarrative-
jurisprudential model, and comparing that model to the Chinese tradition, shows
that there is potential for a rule of law understanding to take root in China. Of
course, potentiality is not actuality. It will take time and struggle to bring a rule
of law regime into full bloom in China, but there is a sufficient basis in Chinese
intellectual history to provide some traditional support for such a regime.
Keywords: Legal Philosophy, Comparative Law, Legal Tradition, Eastern Philosophy,
Confucianism.
The author thanks Li Xinyi (1EI'M) [Momo Li] and He Yitao (fpJ Zm) [Zachary He]
for their invaluable assistance. Ms. Li and Mr. He are both recent graduates of
Wenzhou-Kean University, now studying for post-baccalaureate degrees, Ms. Li at
the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom, and Mr. He at the University of
Chicago in the United States.
The Indonesian Journal of International & Comparative Law
ISSN: 2338-7602; E-ISSN: 2338-770X
http://wwwijil.org
@ 2017 The Institute for Migrant Rights Press](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/indjicl4&div=26&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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Reflections on the Rule of Law upon Listening to President Xi
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