Country Foundations

China

Constitution in force since 1982, 10,960 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
62%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
33%
mean across compared rights
Gap
−29%
delivers less than promised
Executive respects constitution
63%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 0%, practiced 53%, gap +53%Right to life0%53%+53%Freedom from torture — declared 0%, practiced 28%, gap +28%Freedom from torture0%28%+28%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 0%, practiced 49%, gap +49%Freedom from slavery and forced labour0%49%+49%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 49%, gap −51%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%49%−51%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 33%, practiced 43%, gap +10%Right to a fair and public trial33%43%+10%Presumption of innocence — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure0%——Right to legal counsel — declared 50%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure50%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure0%——Due process of law — declared 100%, practiced 38%, gap −62%Due process of law100%38%−62%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure0%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 7%, gap −93%Freedom of expression100%7%−93%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 16%, gap −84%Freedom of the press100%16%−84%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 0%, practiced 24%, gap +24%Freedom of thought and conscience0%24%+24%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 20%, gap −80%Freedom of religion100%20%−80%Separation of religion and state — declared 50%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure50%——Academic freedom — declared 100%, practiced 9%, gap −91%Academic freedom100%9%−91%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 23%, gap −77%Freedom of assembly100%23%−77%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 10%, gap −90%Freedom of association100%10%−90%Right to petition government — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure100%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 0%, practiced 4%, gap +4%Right to form and join trade unions0%4%+4%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 100%, gap +50%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%100%+50%Right to privacy — declared 100%, practiced 12%, gap −88%Right to privacy100%12%−88%Freedom of movement — declared 0%, practiced 51%, gap +51%Freedom of movement0%51%+51%Right to asylum — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure100%——Right to own property — declared 50%, practiced 60%, gap +10%Right to own property50%60%+10%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 34%, gap −66%Equality before the law100%34%−66%Right to education — declared 100%, practiced 37%, gap −63%Right to education100%37%−63%Right to health care — declared 100%, practiced 37%, gap −63%Right to health care100%37%−63%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 55%, gap +55%Right to shelter or housing0%55%+55%Independent judiciary — declared 100%, practiced 11%, gap −89%Independent judiciary100%11%−89%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
0501001912: constitutional text changed (+43 pts declared)1949: constitutional text changed (−8 pts declared)1954: constitutional text changed (+5 pts declared)1975: constitutional text changed (−8 pts declared)1978: constitutional text changed (+5 pts declared)1982: constitutional text changed (+21 pts declared)1925195019752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1911–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −51%
  • Due process of law −62%
  • Freedom of expression −93%
  • Freedom of the press −84%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +53%
  • Freedom from torture +28%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour +49%
  • Freedom of thought and conscience +24%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)signed only
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 2001
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1981
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1980
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 1988
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1992
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2008
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)no action
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyanaHaiti

Data generated 2026-08-08.