Technological Supports for Better Human Rights Protection in the Digital Age

Today's society has entered an age of highly developed technology and overall application of internet technology. Technology and human rights had been the frequently discussed topics since the second half of the last century. The impact of technology on human rights is more prominent and obvious in current digital age, and has become a hot topic of international attention. With the rapid development of digital technology, technological support and digital empowerment have become an important reason for China's significant achievements in safeguarding human rights. The development of responsible artificial intelligence for better human rights protection is becoming a national and international consensus in the digital age.

I. Digital technology can significantly promote human rights protection, providing greater convenience and more possibilities

The strategy of Digital China implemented by China has always adhered to the principles of putting people first and benefiting people, promoting people's well-being and all-round development, and providing more inclusive, convenient, high-quality and efficient digital services. Human rights as a whole have been unprecedentedly enhanced due to the development and application of technology including the Internet, and there are at least a few prominent examples as below.

First, digital poverty reduction. In China, the application of digital technology has effectively promoted targeted poverty alleviation and the all-round construction of a well-off society. Many rural areas have improved their living conditions and quality of life through digital technology, including the internet and mobile payments.

Second, digital education. The application of digital technology has greatly promoted educational equity and the allocation of high-quality educational resources. More and more educated people, including children, are receiving better education through online education platforms and intelligent educational devices. China has made continuous efforts to promote the construction of public digital culture and coordinate the construction of key projects for the digitization of public culture, in particular, the construction of a national smart library system and a public cultural cloud, which provides better basic support for the concept of lifelong education in China when promoting cultural construction.

Third, digital health. The application of digital technology has significantly improved the quality and efficiency of primary medical and health services. More and more people can receive better healthcare services through online medical consultation and medical services. 

Fourth, digital economy. China has exerted great efforts to promote the development and popularization of digital economy. Digital economy is active in China because of its large market and ample space for technological application. The vigorous development of e-commerce has become an important force in stabilizing growth, ensuring employment and promoting consumption. Many individuals and enterprises have improved their competitiveness and creative capabilities through the innovation of digital technology, which promotes and drives the protection of employment and labor rights.

Fifth, digital justice. Digital technology has facilitated the changes in judicial and law enforcement methods. The Chinese court system has fully achieved openness and transparency in the trial process, judgment documents and execution information, making the three major platforms of judicial openness an important window to show modern legal civilization, an important means to protect the litigation rights of parties, and an important way to fulfill the social responsibility of the People's Courts. Internet courts have also been established specifically in Hangzhou, Beijing, and Guangzhou. Impressive and commendable achievements have been made in the informatization construction of the People's Courts and the development of internet justice. Remote online dispute resolution, arbitration and mediation are becoming increasingly common in China.

Sixth, digital security. China has made continuous efforts to intensify internet security and personal privacy protection, and improve the level of personal information protection. In terms of legislation, China has introduced the Personal Information Protection Law and the Regulations on the Internet Protection of Children's Personal Information to protect people's legitimate rights and interests through law enforcement and supervision of the Internet and mobile devices.

Seventh, digital ecosystem. China has exerted continuous efforts to perfect its legal and policy system for green production and consumption, accelerate the transformation of green production modes and green lifestyles through digital technology, and achieve increasing improvements in the digital level of environmental governance. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has issued the "14th Five Year Plan for Industrial Green Development", effectively promoting the development of digital empowerment for green manufacturing. The National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Justice have jointly issued the "Opinions on Accelerating the Establishment of Regulation and Policy System for Green Production and Consumption" to establish a full lifecycle evaluation mechanism for energy consumption, emissions and costs in energy development and production, trade and transportation, equipment manufacturing, conversion and utilization and other related links.

It is worth pointing out that the contents and forms of human rights education in the digital age are more diverse, accessible and effective. There are more and more online human rights education resources, including human rights information, human rights knowledge, human rights related legal databases, and case databases. It is more convenient to provide teaching and training guidance, teaching material support and other resources.

Digital technology has produced more opportunities and greater potential for the realization of human rights. Some scholars believe that new concepts and categories of human rights have been bred in the digital age. Professor Ma Changshan introduced the concept of digital human rights, which has sparked many discussions. It is certain that digital technology will change life, and also have an impact on the law, causing changes in legal concepts and systems.

II. Digital technology poses challenges and creates opportunities in realizing the principle of non-discrimination in the field of human rights and promoting equal enjoyment of human rights

The issue of digital divide is caused as the level and degree of technological popularization and usage vary among different groups and regions, which is a new challenge faced by the principles of equality and non-discrimination in human rights law under the new situation, and also an opportunity to promote the equal enjoyment of human rights. 

It’s clearly stated in the National Human Rights Action Plan (2021-2025), the fourth national human rights action plan being implemented in China, that “bridge the digital divide between urban and rural areas, coordinate the construction of smart cities and digital villages, promote the integrated development of urban and rural informatization and enhance national digital literacy and skills.”

It’s proposed in the "Implementation Plan for Effectively Solving the Difficulties of Elderly People in Using Intelligent Technology" issued by the General Office of the State Council of China in 2020, that the difficulties encountered by elderly people in using smart technology should be effectively resolved with the guidance of policies and the concerted efforts of the whole society, so that they can better adapt to and integrate into the smart society.

It’s specified in the Regulations on Promoting Beijing’s Digital Economy (came into effect on January 1, 2023) that departments engaged in government services, health, civil affairs, economy and informatization shall take measures to encourage the provision of convenient and applicable intelligent products and services for elderly people, and promote barrier-free digital construction. Alternative services and products shall be provided for those who have difficulties in using digital public services.

Shijiazhuang, Qingdao, Kunming, Haikou and other cities have launched the "Public Welfare Action for Helping Elderly People Enjoying Intelligent Technology" to widely mobilize various forces to provide volunteer training services for elderly people and promote the construction of barrier-free information for the elderly society. Since the beginning of 2023, it has been found that a number of new digital public telephone booths, "Hello, Elderly Friend Booth", have appeared on the streets of Shanghai. As a digital upgrade project for public telephone booths in Shanghai, the renovated Elderly Friend Booth not only retains the function of add-in card call and expands mobile phone charging function, but also achieves livelihood-serving-oriented functions, such as one-click calling for rides, appointment registration, 15-minute life circle, and pension inquiry through the newly installed electronic screen inside the booth.

For the disabled group, specific provisions are made in the national human rights action plan being implemented in China that "accelerate the construction of barrier-free information, support the research and development of barrier-free information terminal products, and explore the digitization and intelligent upgrading of traditional barrier-free facilities and equipment.”

III. Digital technology can provide effective means for timely monitoring, reporting and stopping the violation of human rights, as well as rehabilitating criminals and offenders

Digital technology can monitor and record the violation of human rights in real time, and detect and stop illegal activities in a timely manner. Digital technology can also track and identify the violation of human rights by facial recognition and other means, thereby improving the efficiency and accuracy of monitoring and stopping the violation of human rights.

The cameras in urban transportation arteries, areas, and places play an important role in preventing crimes, recording illegal and criminal behaviors, and arresting suspects. In addition to other reasons, technology is also an important factor for the significant reduction in crime rates in urban and rural areas of China.

The characteristic of technological support is very obvious in China's efforts to combat human trafficking, such as the quick search mechanism DNA matching technology and database construction, and the application of cross-age facial recognition technology in handling cases, which have played a unique advantage in relevant cases. Not only have new cases been greatly reduced, many old cases from decades ago have also been solved through the use of technological means.

In criminal proceedings, the requirement for audio and video recordings is an effective measure to prevent the occurrence of torture during interrogation. The establishment of camera supervision in the custody of suspects and criminals in accordance with the law is an effective means to prevent the violation of human rights (such as abuse and injury) between the regulatory authorities and detainees, and between detainees. The widespread use of audio and video law enforcement recorders by law enforcement personnel in their tasks is also an important guarantee for regulating law enforcement behavior. In October 2016, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Security, and the Ministry of Justice jointly issued the "Opinions on Promoting the Reform of the Trial-Centered Criminal Procedure System", which stipulated the provisions on the perfection of the interrogation system, the prevention of extorting confession by torture, and the prohibition of forcing anyone to prove their guilt, and required to synchronize the audio and video recordings of the entire interrogation process in strict compliance with legal provisions, and gradually implement synchronous audio and video recording of the entire interrogation process in all cases.

Today, it has become easier to obtain audio and video evidence for reporting to the police and recording illegal activities with the widespread use of the internet and the fact of everyone having a smartphone. The ability, level, and social foundation of media supervision are not the same as before, which provides a better environment and more possibility for safeguarding human rights. For example, reporting domestic violence to the police can be completed by simply dialing a mobile-phone number. Some mini apps installed in mobile-phone can provide warnings for illegal crimes and the violation of human rights.

Digital technology provides the support of effective evidence for human rights protection. Digital technology can effectively collect evidence for the violation of human rights with high degree of traceability and immutability, making it harder to tamper and erase the evidence and providing strong support for the investigation of infringement.

Special emphasis is placed on the restorative justice of putting people first and safeguarding human rights in contemporary criminal law. Obvious social trends are replacing detention with freedom penalty and strengthening community correction for criminals and minor offenders. China's legislation and legal practice are exactly like this. The development of electronic monitoring technology has made it possible for implementing penalties and community correction in non-custodial measure, providing practical guarantees for changes in judicial concepts.

IV. Digital technology supports global human rights governance

Digital technology can also promote the compliance and implementation of international human rights law, and global human rights governance. With the wide application of digital technology, more and more countries are adopting digital technology to protect their human rights. Moreover, digital technology can improve the efficiency and accuracy of cross-border human rights monitoring, strengthen communications and cooperations between different countries, and promote global human rights protection.

Under the framework of international human rights law, legal concept and working standards are similar in some fields, and international investigation and comparison may be more operational than before. The work of international human rights mechanism is more visible and accessible than ever before, owing to the popularization and application of internet technology. The active participation of non-governmental organizations and the wide spread of the Internet have greatly expanded the influence of whether the country review of UN Human Rights Council or the performance review of UN Human Rights Treaty Agency. People can follow the human-rights-related conferences and activities of different international organizations such as UN in real-time or after the event through the UN Television platform and other medias, and non-governmental organization platforms. In today's world, the global sharing of human rights information and knowledge has reached an unprecedented level.

The Office of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has attached great importance to the application of digital technology as a top priority in overcoming the limitations of UN human rights mechanism and its operations, maximizing its work efficiency, and expanding its work influence. In addition to UN Human Rights Treaty Database, the human rights homepages of various UN Member States and the official homepages of UN Human Rights Mechanism and Agency, a new database of individual appeals and adjudicated cases by UN Human Rights Treaty Agency was launched last year.

During the COVID-19, online meetings were widely used, which greatly saved the costs for travel and meeting organization. The channels and work habits for long-distance participation and communication have been formed despite of the limitations.

During the biennial meeting between the UN Committee against Torture and representatives of non-governmental organizations on April 25th of this year, the representatives of nongovernmental organizations proposed that the method of online meeting during the epidemic allowed non-governmental organizations from different countries to participate in briefing sessions with the Committee, and the role and function of online communication channel is expected to be played although the epidemic is over now.

V. The limitations of digital technology and its threat to human rights protection

Technology, including digital technology and artificial intelligence, can also turn into its opposite and be exploited by criminals, posing a threat to human rights. Serious and organized crimes such as telecommunications fraud and human trafficking can also become more rampant by using modern technology, which poses challenges to national governance and the fight against crime.

There are also some limitations in the field of using digital technology to protect human rights and playing its constructive role. Firstly, digital technology cannot guarantee 100% accuracy in practical applications. For example, digital technology may have certain erroneous judgements and false negative, which requires a comprehensive judgment based on other evidence and information. Secondly, the information security issue of digital technology will also affect the implementation of human rights protection, and corresponding measures need to be taken to ensure the security and privacy protection of data. The development and application of technology should still be people-oriented, and the application process of technology should be designed, guided and controlled in accordance with the needs of people and centered on people. Digital divide widely exists among different populations and regions, especially between different countries and regions, which is a limitation or challenge of digital technology in promoting human rights. Different countries can and should strengthen the exchanges and cooperations on related technologies and applications. Technologically powerful countries are suggested to lean towards developing and underdeveloped countries in particular, and provide them with technological aid and support.

Facing the technological challenges and limitations of the digital age in the future, it is necessary to make reasonable and appropriate use of modern technology based on actual and specific conditions. Instead of avoiding it or giving it up easily by a slight risk, we should intensify the application of digital technology in human rights protection, and make ceaselessly efforts to perfect relevant laws, regulations and technical means for increasingly scientific and effective human rights protection.

In today's digital age, the rule of law is the foundation of national governance, while the support of technology for human rights requires protection from the rule of law. General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to the legislative issues in key areas including technology, and he emphasizes that “accelerate the pace of legislation in areas including digital economy, internet finance, artificial intelligence, big data and cloud computing, and strive to improve the legal system necessary for national governance and meeting the growing needs of people for a better life”.

In summary, digital technology plays a vital and increasingly important role in human rights protection. In the digital age, proper handling of the relation between technology and human rights is worthy of sustained attention, serious discussion and broad consensus from the entire society.

(The author is executive director and researcher of the Human Rights Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, member of the UN Committee against Torture)