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Inalienable Rights

December 10, 2008

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights remains as relevant to society today as it did when it was adopted by the UN 60 years ago. DW looks at its effects and the people who had a role in writing it.

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Though all its goals have not been achieved, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) remains as relevant today as when it was adopted 60 years ago.

The United Nations marks the 60th anniversary of the UDHR, which came into force on Dec. 10, 1948, in Paris, and represents the first comprehensive agreement among nations outlining the specific rights and freedoms of all human beings.

"We are still, 60 years on, a very long way from achieving the goals laid down in the Universal Declaration," the UN human rights office said. "No country in the world can sit back complacently and say, 'We're there.'"

Deutsche Welle examines the history of the declaration, as well as its successes and failures, over the last six decades.

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The U.N.'s human rights chief has warned that the world's poorest could face more dire abuses as the global financial crisis unfolds. The United Nations and organizations around the world are today commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The charter was adopted in 1948, just after World War II, to ensure that every individual would have recourse to international law to safeguard his or her basic rights. But the treaty is breached as often as honored. United Nations officials say the financial crisis could make it even more difficult to ensure the Charter's provisions are respected -- and warn that poverty is a cause as well as a consequence of violating basic rights.
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Though celebrating their 60th birthday today, human rights remain an unfulfilled promise for millions of people worldwide - je 10.12.2008 08

Human rights remain an unfulfilled promise for millions of people worldwide, says United Nations High Commissioner Navi Pillay. In a statement marking the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, she warned that the financial crisis must not be allowed to lead to further erosion of the rights of the poorest. The Declaration was adopted by the UN in the aftermath of World War Two. It was the first comprehensive agreement among nations outlining universal rights and freedoms.
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