Individual Autonomy and Responsibility in Late Imperial China By ...

of society (e.g., aristocratic, open, patriarchal) but maintain moral inspiration: respect of oneself (有耻), care for relatives and near persons, the extension of empathy to others with decreasing intensity, feeling the sense of unity with environment and nature, and respect for living beings and inanimate things.⁵⁴

4. Any adequate moral system emphasizes reciprocity (the Golden Rule, and the extension of one’s desires), and the Confucian tradition of self-cultivation would contribute to improving life in the world.

5. A unique exclusive morality (moral universalism) as well as moral nihilism is hard to defend. On the contrary, it would be reasonable to accept a moral value pluralism, a peaceful coexistence between adherents of rival moral conceptions, ⁵⁵ without prejudice to the human dignity that should be protected by a common law. The preservation of human dignity can be progressively reached through the implementation of a common ius gentium (law of nations) based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Especially in a world becoming more and more a unique village, any violation of human rights in one country affects other parts of the world, because nobody can say “I didn’t know,” and any violation becomes a scar for everybody’s dignity. Thus, coexistence can only be facilitated on the basis of mutual trust and a certain level transparency in all political organizations. Among the achievements of modern thought, the defence of human rights, tolerance, and respect of life and freedom signal the highest level for the solution of conflicts and protection of minorities. This is the reason why assuming culturalists’ culture-specific value systems cannot imply relativization of the respect for human dignity and freedom, the environment, or the value of life and tolerance, all modern achievements of civilization and refined sensibility. Wealth redistribution in the world is an important factor of peace, and the change in the balance of powers is a natural process. However, the institutional democratic arrangements of the emerging powers are an indispensable guarantee for international confidence and cooperation, based only on the transparency of information, freedom of mass media, and political organization.