Human rights are the fundamental freedoms and dignity that all people are born with. They are a universal standard that is recognised by most countries as part of international law. They form the foundation for a world built on peace, justice and equality. However, when they are not well understood or promoted, abuses can occur in the form of discrimination, intolerance and injustice.
The idea of human rights developed in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as revolutions took place across Europe and America. These ideas were expressed in documents such as the American Declaration of Independence (1776) and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen (1789). These declarations challenged traditional authority and asserted the right to ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’.
Today, human rights are central to the work of the United Nations. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted at a critical point in history – out of the horrors of World War II – and has become a standard that all states recognise as part of international law.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was developed by representatives from different regions, cultures and legal systems who came together to agree on common values. This landmark document inspired, and helped to paved the way for the adoption of over seventy human rights treaties that are applied on a permanent basis at global level.
The UN system is designed to ensure that all States are held accountable for upholding their human rights obligations. A key part of this is the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a process that takes place every five years where all States are reviewed by a panel of independent experts who are elected on a thematic and country basis to 3-year terms.