The Implementation of Article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in China: Understanding and Reforming Relevant Law and Legal Culture

This thesis is centred on Article 12 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (the CRPD) - equal recognition before the law - and its implementation at the national level in China. Based on an in-depth understanding of Article 12 and the empirical research conducted in China regarding the relevant Chinese legal culture, this thesis closely examines the challenges concerning the implementation of Article 12 in China and the symbiotic relationship between the implementation of Article 12 in China and the relevant cultural context. It begins by developing a framework to theorize the implementation of Article 12, a piece of international human rights law, at the national level. Based on this theoretical framework, the full implementation of Article 12 at the national level necessitates an in-depth understanding of Article 12 and the relevant cultural context. The meaning, implications, and values of Article 12 should be fully rendered at the national level in a culturally sensitive way to ensure that they can be fully understood and effectively utilized by local people. By conducting analysis of both Article 12 and relevant Chinese law, this thesis identifies some of the fundamental gaps between the current Chinese law on legal capacity and adult guardianship and Article 12. By conducting and analyzing the empirical research of relevant legal culture in China, this thesis examines the legal culture-related challenges that should be taken into account in the implementation of Article 12 in China. Drawing on the analysis of Article 12 and relevant Chinese law and legal culture, this thesis reflects on reforming the domestic law to transpose Article 12 at the national level in a culturally sensitive way and the potential social changes that could be fostered by the implementation of Article 12.