I am pleased to return to Renmin University before my term as U.S. Ambassador to China ends. Some of my most memorable experiences in China were visiting universities. I was particularly pleased to speak during the Moot Court competition here last year.

As some of you may already know, I will soon be returning to the United States to be with my family so that my two older children can finish high school there. Moving our entire family back to the United States was not an easy decision, but it was one that my family and I made together. My wife and kids are sad to leave; the Chinese people have always been very warm and friendly. It was gratifying and exciting for our family to learn and explore some of the country of our ancestors.

Before leaving China, I would like to talk about some topics that are particularly important to me and China: the rule of law and freedom of speech are of great significance to the formation of a progressive and stable society.

The rule of law and free speech have both helped America become such a successful, creative, dynamic and stable society that has attracted and continues to attract people from around the world.

Let me talk about the rule of law first. As you may know, I started out as a lawyer and spent four years as a criminal prosecutor in my hometown of Seattle, Washington. I prosecuted people accused of burglary, robbery, drug trafficking and murder.

My passion for the law continued throughout my career. I worked as a part-time judge for a short time. As Governor of Washington State, my job frequently involves legal matters.

According to the American criminal justice system, whether it is a small burglary case or a prosecution involving life and death, everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Furthermore, all people—big and small, rich and poor, famous and unknown—have a fair chance and are treated equally.

The rights of the little guy are the cornerstone of the American legal system. As early as the 18th century, few people thought that a loose alliance of ordinary people in the 13 colonies across the Atlantic Ocean could gain independence from the rule of Great Britain. But the colonies did win. As young America continued to work to create the foundation of a new nation, our Founding Fathers demanded that our Constitution guarantee the defense of the rights of the little guy.

Through generations, our courts in the United States have established that no one is above the law, not even the President of the United States of America. In the 1974 case of United States v. Nixon, the Supreme Court ordered the White House to release tapes of conversations recorded in the Oval Office, despite President Nixon's strenuous objections. The tapes revealed information that exposed the White House's cover-up of illegal activities and ultimately led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. Our legal and political systems have proven once again that no one is above the law, not even the most powerful people in America.

China’s own legal tradition and history are much longer than ours, and are different from the United States in many aspects, but they also incorporate the concept of equality before the law. As far back as the Qin State in the 4th century BC, the famous Chinese politician and reformer Shang Yang expounded his legal philosophy in the "Book of Shang Jun". One of the most important doctrines he established is reflected in his famous saying: "Princes who break the law are as guilty as the common people." Therefore, the principle of equality before the law for everyone was proposed and recognized in China more than 2,300 years ago.

The United States Constitution is the foundation of our country’s legal system. One reason this system has proven valuable is that it can adapt to the changes in society that are bound to occur over time. In this sense, it has the ability to correct itself. From time to time, we amend the Constitution to more accurately reflect our country's values ??and to extend protections to more people—including those who have been excluded in the past. African Americans were not considered American citizens with full rights and freedoms until the adoption of three constitutional amendments nearly 100 years after the founding of our country. Likewise, women were not allowed to vote until the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920.

The 2008 election of Barack Obama as our country's first African American president provided yet another testament to the progress we have made.

In my own country’s experience, the rule of law provides governments with greater legitimacy because people believe there are fair and transparent channels for correcting various problems. The rule of law does not necessarily guarantee a favorable outcome for a given individual. The party who loses in court will not agree with the outcome of the case, but they come away thinking they were given a chance to plead their case in court - a fair chance to plead their case. They came away convinced of the fundamental integrity of the legal process.

This is the same as sports activities. You can't always agree with the referee's decision, but if everyone abides by the rules and if everyone believes that the referee is fair, athletes and fans can accept the result of the game, even if The side they supported lost. But what is unacceptable is that the referee ignores the rules or distorts the rules to favor a certain side or player.

A recent example of this confidence and belief in our nation’s legal system is the 2000 U.S. presidential election—Governor George Bush v. Vice President Al Gore. Al Gore). The result of the presidential election was finally decided by the votes of only nine people - the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. It was the first time in the history of the United States. They had to decide what process they should use to recount some very confusing votes in Florida — a decision that everyone knew at the time would confirm who was elected, given how close the state was. President of the United States. Their decision on how to count Florida's contested votes favored George Bush, even though some groups believe Vice President Al Gore actually won more votes in Florida and therefore should be declared the next president.

However, even though the Supreme Court's decision was extremely controversial, Vice President Al Gore and his supporters accepted the court's ruling because they believed in the integrity of our nation's legal institutions and legal processes that needed to be done. make the final decision. In many other countries, presidential elections are so close and competitive that they can lead to angry mobs taking to the streets, revolutions, and even military seizures of power. The American people's acceptance of the Court's decision on who becomes the next president is clear evidence of the importance of a strong rule of law as a stabilizing force.

Another stabilizing force in American society is freedom of speech. We view free speech as a universal right enshrined in our Constitution. In fact, the Chinese Constitution also stipulates freedom of speech. Freedom of speech is an integral part of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which stipulates that we enjoy basic rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of religious belief, and freedom of assembly.

The protection of free speech in the First Amendment applies not only to speech that reflects majority opinion or the position of the government, but more importantly to the expression of ideas that do not represent the mainstream and are often unpopular. However, society benefits greatly from the public expression of these views. These remarks can spark much-needed discussion on important topics. These discussions can promote and influence majority opinion, while in the process achieving policy changes that improve society.

This has happened again and again in American history. Let me give you two recent examples.

The first is the Civil Rights Movement. Although President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, which granted slaves freedom, much of the United States remained segregated for the next 100 years. In direct defiance of our Constitution and Lincoln's Declaration, many Southern states approved laws that restricted the rights of African Americans. These states used legal provisions to enforce racial segregation and restrict the civil rights of African Americans.

Civil rights leaders used the constitutional right to freedom of expression to argue eloquently in the 1950s and 1960s that segregation had no place in a modern, democratic society.

The most influential of them was Reverend Martin Luther King Junior, who described such an era in his famous speech entitled "I Have a Dream." In his own words, " One day, my four young children will live in a country where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by their character.”

The moral power of this speech inspired. entire country and urged politicians to take action. Within two years, Congress passed historic civil and voting rights legislation and outlawed major forms of discrimination.

A second example of free speech playing a key role in modern American history is the protests against the Vietnam War. The American people used their freedom of expression to question the wisdom of sending young men to the jungles of Vietnam to fight a war they believed was unnecessary.

Secretary of State John Kerry was one of the most eloquent opponents of the war. In 1971, he spoke at a congressional hearing on behalf of Vietnam Veterans Against the War. One sentence in his testimony has now become a famous saying: "How can you ask a person to lose his life in Vietnam? How can you ask a person to lose his life for a mistake?"

I can tell you this Guaranteed, this is not what President Nixon and our military leaders want to hear. But by using their freedom of expression and making a strong case against the Vietnam War, a young John Kerry and thousands of protesters helped change the government's course and end the war.

Speaking truth to power, as John Kerry did, is not a uniquely American trait. China itself has an old saying that dates back more than 2,000 years ago, that is, "loyal advice may displease the ears but help the deeds". This sentence talks about Zhang Liang's advice to Liu Bang after he captured the capital of Qin in 207 BC. Liu Bang wanted to live in the palace he had just captured and enjoy its treasures and beauties, but Zhang Liang told him that if he did so, he might be regarded as an accomplice. Liu Bang had no choice but to listen to Zhang Liang's advice and thus won the support of the people.

Of course, freedom of expression is about more than delivering a memorable speech. It also includes the free flow of information. Unfettered and unrestricted access to information is vital to the modernization and development progress of society. Here in China, we have seen over the past few years the important and positive role that the free flow of information can play in the modernization and development of society.

Let’s look at environmental issues first. In Beijing, everyone knows that the air quality is very bad, but they don’t know how bad it is. Americans who live here are concerned and want information about the quality of the air they breathe. To this end, the U.S. Embassy began providing PM 2.5 hourly readings for Americans living in Beijing. This information ultimately reaches a wider audience and helps inform Chinese citizens’ public discussions online and through other channels about what their country should do to improve air quality.

Soon after, Beijing and other major cities in China began to monitor and publish their own PM2.5 data. In recent months, the central government and the Beijing government have further developed comprehensive plans to improve air quality.

The free flow of information is also critical to improving governance, particularly in combating the scourge of corruption. I have been particularly impressed by how ordinary Chinese citizens have used the Internet to report alleged corruption over the past few years. In the United States, we also fight corruption by requiring government officials to publicly declare their assets annually. Requiring this information makes it harder to hide bribery and other corrupt practices.

Here in China, there have been calls for similar demands on Chinese officials. The U.S. government is particularly concerned that those calling for change, some of whom are now being prosecuted, are being retaliated against for their public efforts to expose corruption and for peacefully expressing their views.

We also know that diversity of opinion and the free flow of ideas have never been more important to a country's success than in today's Internet age, an age particularly ripe for creativity and innovation.

Vice President Biden said in Beijing last month that innovation thrives where people can breathe freely, speak freely and challenge orthodoxy. It thrives where newspapers can report the truth without fear. We have many disagreements now on some of the issues mentioned above, including the treatment of American journalists. However, I and many people around the world believe that if China respects universal human rights, it will be stronger, more stable, and more innovative.

As more and more people go online and express their thoughts freely, the Internet becomes more valuable to everyone, to users and to society. But if people are not free to fully express their ideas or participate in online discussions, the Internet's full potential will never be realized. Therefore, it is important that everyone should be able to express their ideas on the Internet and use the Internet to debate and discuss topics, even if what they say may be unpopular and even if what they say may be viewed negatively by some groups or individuals. Sensitive remarks.

The free flow of information online has become increasingly important in a globalized world. In such a world, the most pressing problems are not limited by national borders; when any one country erects barriers, all countries suffer. This is especially true when dealing with international issues, such as infectious diseases that can spread rapidly from one country to another, and food safety issues in this era of global trade.

In summary, the rule of law and freedom of expression are critical for countries to move forward and make progress. One of the many things that make me proud to be an American is that, through generations of our people, the American people have continued to strive to bring America closer to the ideal of creating "a more perfect union" enunciated in the preamble to our Constitution. .

Freedom of speech and the rule of law are the main pillars of this philosophy. They help create a people who are united, patriotic, convinced of their rights and invested in their country's future.

China has a bright future, but realizing its full potential will depend on a neutral and respectful judicial system, active and committed lawyers, wise leadership, and respect for the rule of law. It will also depend on respect for the freedom of expression guaranteed by the constitution for all, an open Internet, and a broadly informed and willing to engage in unrestricted dialogue on how best to build a stable and progressive future for China. citizen. A vibrant marketplace of ideas is vital to the health and progress of any country.