Governing artificial intelligence and protecting human rights: A comparative legal perspective from the European Union and China

Bećirović-Alić, Maida and Gordanić, Jelica (2026) Governing artificial intelligence and protecting human rights: A comparative legal perspective from the European Union and China. Međunarodni problemi, 78 (2). pp. 415-463. ISSN 2683-3867

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Abstract

The global expansion of automated systems, which often operate in a nontransparent manner and beyond effective human control, opens up complex issues related to the protection of basic human rights, which represents a broader context of this research. Particular challenges arise in the field of international law, since there is no single, binding transnational normative framework that would ensure consistent protection of human rights in the digital environment. By applying the comparative law method and analyzing the content of relevant documents, this paper examines the regulatory models of the European Union and the People’s Republic of China, as the two most globally influential models of artificial intelligence management, in which liberal and illiberal concepts of human rights protection are clearly reflected, pointing to their legal-political framework, regulatory scopes and limitations. Special emphasis is placed on identifying normative gaps and risks to human rights, including privacy, non-discrimination, freedom of expression and fair treatment. The starting hypothesis of the paper is that the current international legal framework is unable to respond to the systemic challenges generated by the application of artificial intelligence, and that the divergent models of the EU and China deepen the global normative gap and prevent the establishment of universal standards for the protection of human rights. Through a critical comparison of the differences between Western liberal model and more authoritarian approach to technology management, the paper points to the urgent need to establish a globally harmonized and politically sustainable framework of international law for the regulation of AI systems.

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