Search

In this paper, I will present some results from cross-cultural survey of human rights that are a part of the APDR project (the Asia Pacific Dispute Resolution Project.) These data are collected from Canada, China, and Japan. Based on the results, I will argue that the respondent's views on international and local laws and norms as well as legal and ADR institutions are structured according to each legal culture. Although Canada, Japan, and China share the "modern" court system, their attitudes toward the judiciary vary in many respects. Especially for human rights matter, their evaluation of international standards as a tool for solve dispute depends partly on how human rights matter is perceived and partly on how they are protected domestically. Of course each community has its own lay system for dispute resolution. Even in those systems people refer to national and international laws for supporting their claims. Considering these tendencies, I will conclude that people selectively adapt international standards in their legal consciousness. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]