美国总统奥巴马在上海与中国青年对话实录(2009-11-16)

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I believe that each country must chart its own course. China is an ancient nation, with a deeply rooted culture. The United States, by comparison, is a young nation, whose
culture is determined by the many different immigrants who have come to our shores, and by the founding documents that guide our democracy.

Those documents put forward a simple vision of human affairs, and they enshrine several core principles --

1. that all men and women are created equal, and possess certain fundamental rights;

2. that government should reflect the will of the people and respond to their wishes;

3. that commerce should be open, information freely accessible;

4. and that laws, and not simply men, should guarantee the administration of justice.

Of course, the story of our nation is not without its difficult chapters. In many ways -- over many years -- we have struggled
to advance the promise of these principles to all of our people, and to forge a more perfect union. We fought a very painful civil war, and freed a portion of our population from slavery. It took time for women to be extended the right to vote, workers to
win the right to organize, and for immigrants from different corners of the globe to be fully embraced. Even after they were freed, African Americans persevered through conditions that were separate and not equal, before winning full and equal rights.

None of this was easy. But we made progress because of our belief in those core principles, which have served as our compass through the darkest of storms. That is why Lincoln could stand up in the midst of civil war and
declare it a struggle to see whether any nation, conceived in liberty, and "dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal" could long endure. That is why Dr. Martin Luther King could stand on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and ask that our
nation live out the true meaning of its creed. That's why immigrants from China to Kenya could find a home on our shores; why opportunity is available to all who would work for it; and why someone like me, who less than 50 years ago would have had trouble
voting in some parts of America, is now able to serve as its President.

And that is why America will always speak out for these core principles around the world. We do not seek to impose any system of government on any other nation, but we also
don't believe that the principles that we stand for are unique to our nation. These freedoms of expression and worship -- of access to information and political participation -- we believe are universal rights. They should be available to all people, including
ethnic and religious minorities -- whether they are in the United States, China, or any nation. Indeed, it is that respect for universal rights that guides America's openness to other countries; our respect for different cultures; our commitment to international
law; and our faith in the future.

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我认为每个国家都应该勾画出自己要走的路，中国是一个文明古国，它有着博大精深的文化。相对而言，美国是一个年轻的国家，它的文化受到来自许多不同国家移民的影响，还受到我们民主制度文件的影响。

我有一个非常简单的向往，代表了一些核心的原则，就是所有的人生来平等，都有着基本的权利，而政府应当反映人们的意志，贸易应该是开放的，信息流通应当是自由的，而法律要保证这个公平。

当然，我们的国家历史也不是没有过困难的地方，从很多方面来讲，很多年以来，我们是通过斗争来促进这些原则或者使所有的人民能够享受到。为了缔造一个更完美的联合，我们也打过一个很痛苦的内战，把一部分我们被奴役的人口释放出来，经过一段时间才能使妇女有投票权，劳工有组织权，包括来自各地的移民能够全部被接受。即使他们被解放以后，非洲裔美国人也和美国人经过一些分开的、不平等的条件，经过一段时间才争取到全面的平等权利。

所有这些是不容易的。但是我们对这些核心原则的信念使我们取得了进展，在最黑暗的风暴当中作为我们的指南针。这是为什么林肯在内战期间站起来说过，任何一个国家以自由、以所有人类平等的原则能够长久的存在，也就是为什么金博士在林肯纪念馆的前台站起来，说我们国家要必须真正的实现我们的信念。也就是为什么来自中国或者肯尼亚的移民能够到我们的家，也是为什么一个不到50年前在某些地方连投票都遇到困难的人，现在就能够做到那个国家的总统。

这就是为什么美国永远为了全世界各地的核心原则说话，我们不寻求把任何政治体制强制给任何国家，但是我们也不认为我们所支持的这些原则是我们国家所独有的，这些表达自由、宗教崇拜自由、接触信息的机会、政治的参与，我们认为这些是普世的权利，应该是所有人民能够享受到的，包括少数民族和宗教的族群，不管是在中国、美国和任何国家，对于普遍权利的尊敬，作为美国对其他国家的开放态度的指导原则，我们对其他文化的尊重，我们对国际法的承诺和对未来的信念的原则。

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