本文是秦伟平先生2026年8月30日在印度达兰萨拉“民主中国与未来图伯特论坛”上的主旨英文演讲，并提供中文翻译供大家参考。

Collective Vision for a Democratic Future

Hello, everyone.

It is a great honor to be here in Dharamsala, and to have the opportunity to discuss a question that I believe is larger than any individual person or political organization:

What kind of future do we want to build together?

When we talk about democracy, I think we should be careful not to reduce democracy to elections alone.

Elections are important, but democracy is much more than voting.

Democracy means that ordinary people have a voice in decisions that affect their lives. It means that government power has limits. It means that no leader, no political party, and no government should be above the law.

For me, a democratic future should rest on several basic principles.

First, human dignity.

Every person should have the right to speak, to think, to worship, and to live according to his or her conscience without fear.

Second, the rule of law.

A democratic society cannot depend on the goodwill of one leader. Institutions must be stronger than individuals. Government officials must also be accountable for their actions.

Third, freedom of expression and freedom of information.

People cannot make meaningful political choices if they are not allowed to hear different opinions. We should not be afraid of disagreement. A healthy society should have enough confidence to tolerate criticism.

Fourth, peaceful political participation.

People who disagree with the government should not automatically be treated as enemies. Political differences should be resolved through dialogue, elections, law, and peaceful civic participation—not through fear or violence.

And finally, I believe our democratic future must include mutual respect among different communities.

China is a country with enormous diversity—different regions, ethnic groups, languages, religions, and cultural traditions. A democratic future should not require everyone to become the same.

On the contrary, democracy should give people the confidence to preserve their identity while participating equally in a common political system.

For me, the most important question is therefore not simply who will govern China in the future.

The deeper question is:

How will power be exercised?

Will government power belong to the people?

Will citizens have meaningful choices?

Will courts be independent?

Will journalists and civil society be able to operate freely?

Will minority communities have a genuine voice in decisions concerning their own cultural and religious life?

These are not questions about one person or one political party.

They are questions about the kind of society we want to leave for the next generation.

I believe a democratic future should not be built on revenge.

It should be built on reconciliation, accountability, and equal citizenship.

We may disagree with politics. We may come from different backgrounds. But we can still agree on one basic principle:

No government should be afraid of its own people, and no people should be afraid of their government.

That, in my view, is the beginning of a democratic future.

Thank you.

中文参考译文

各位朋友，大家好。

非常荣幸来到达兰萨拉，也很高兴能够和大家讨论一个我认为超越个人、超越任何政治组织的问题：

我们究竟希望共同建立一个什么样的未来？

当我们谈论民主的时候，我认为不能简单地把民主理解为选举。

选举当然非常重要，但民主远远不只是投票。

民主意味着普通人能够参与影响自己生活的公共决策；意味着政府的权力必须受到限制；意味着任何领导人、任何政党、任何政府，都不能凌驾于法律之上。

在我看来，一个民主的未来至少应该建立在几个基本原则之上。

第一，人的尊严。

每个人都应该有表达、思考、信仰和按照自己的良知生活的权利，而不应该生活在恐惧之中。

第二，法治。

一个民主社会不能依赖某一个领导人的善意。制度必须比个人更强大，政府官员也必须对自己的行为承担责任。

第三，言论自由和信息自由。

如果人们不能听到不同的声音，就不可能真正作出有意义的政治选择。我们不应该害怕不同意见。一个有信心的社会，应该能够容纳批评。

第四，和平的政治参与。

不同意政府的人，不应该自动被视为敌人。政治分歧应该通过对话、选举、法律以及和平的公民参与来解决，而不是通过恐惧或者暴力。

最后，我认为民主的未来必须包含不同群体之间的相互尊重。

中国是一个非常多元的国家，有不同的地区、民族、语言、宗教和文化传统。民主的未来不应该要求所有人变得一样。

恰恰相反，民主应该让每个人都有信心保持自己的身份，同时平等地参与一个共同的政治制度。

所以，对我来说，真正重要的问题并不仅仅是：

未来谁来统治中国？

更深层的问题是：

权力究竟应该怎样被行使？

政府的权力是否真正属于人民？

公民是否拥有有意义的选择？

法院是否能够独立？

记者和公民社会是否能够自由运作？

少数群体在涉及自身文化和宗教生活的问题上，是否拥有真正的发言权？

这些问题并不只是关于某一个人或者某一个政党。

它们关系到我们希望给下一代留下一个什么样的社会。

我认为，民主的未来不应该建立在报复之上。

它应该建立在和解、问责和平等公民权利之上。

我们可能有不同的政治观点，也可能来自不同的背景。但是，我们仍然可以认同一个最基本的原则：

一个政府不应该害怕自己的人民，一个人民也不应该害怕自己的政府。

在我看来，这就是民主未来的起点。

谢谢大家。