In recent years, human rights in China has become a contentious issue both in China and in the West. Since China began its economic reform and open-door policy in the late 1970s, the Chinese state and society have been in transition. The state has redefined its arbitrary role and society has had greater autonomy and become more assertive. Chinese citizens are increasingly aware of their rights and consciously attempting to promote and protect their rights.;In order to reach a better understanding of China's human rights situation, this thesis first examines the different legal-political and social-cultural traditions of the West and China, which influence their rights theories and practices. This thesis then analyzes the major human rights problems in contemporary China and finds that many citizens in China seem more concerned about human rights related to their everyday life than with political issues. However, civil and political rights are still very important for Chinese citizens. In fact, the promotion of citizens' civil and political rights is closely associated with, and even largely dependent on, the overall improvement of human rights in areas such as labour rights, property rights, right of mobility and other rights-based entitlements.;Exploring the two different methods of human rights protection -- legal and political -- is also one of the purposes of this thesis. The co-existence of the two avenues in China also reflects a difference between China and the West in the practical mechanisms available for protecting citizens' rights. Research on the effectiveness of China's Administrative Litigation Law (representing the legal measure) and Letters and Visits System (representing the traditional political measure) in protecting citizens' rights sheds light on the protection of human rights in contemporary China. It finds that Chinese citizens often prefer traditional political channels, rather than relying on formal legal venues, for the protection of their rights. This reflects interesting characteristics of China's legal reform and social transformation, but also indicates that China's human rights protection practices are still in a state of flux.;In the future, the development of protection for human rights in China will depend on the effectiveness of the two approaches. This thesis concludes that in order to achieve the improvement of human rights in China, it will be necessary to understand human rights in the contemporary Chinese context, and to harmonize the practice of human rights protection with Chinese cultural traditions, but that human rights practice should also be compatible with the universal nature of human rights. With improvement in the human rights situation, China's distinctive cultural traditions will be modified in order to conform to the core universal value of human rights.;However, differences between the West and China with respect to the theories and practices of human rights remain, and they merit analysis. Generally, it is individual rights and freedoms that are emphasized by the West, while in China, welfare rights are the primary focus. So, when China's human rights problems are criticized by the West, civil and political rights are always at the centre of the criticism; in response, China often highlights its commitment to social, economic and cultural rights.
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