Celebrating a pivotal moment in the history of human rights: International Human Rights Day

The 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 (UDHR) is ?being celebrated internationally today, ?Sunday 10 December 2023. ?

The most translated document in the world, the UDHR set out for the first time the need for fundamental human rights to be universally protected, recognising the need for all human beings to have inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights.??

As the predecessor of the United Nations (UN), the UDHR paved the way for the international human rights system we have today. It laid the foundation for many subsequent international and regional human rights treaties. Of the nine ‘core’ UN human rights treaties, the UK has signed and ratified seven. ?

?These treaties provide greater clarity on and enshrine specific rights for children, women, disabled people, racial and ethnic minority groups, as well as the right to be free from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.??

?The 75th anniversary of the UDHR is an important moment to note the vital role of national human rights institutions (NHRIs) and reflect on some of our work at the Equality and Human Rights Commission this year.??

A milestone year for the protection of human rights?

In 2023, we have helped to uphold these rights in the UK through in many ways.??

?Our work has included:??

• The publication of our Equality and Human Rights Monitor report – a comprehensive examination of Britain’s equality and human rights landscape over the past five years where we highlighted both progress and challenges.??
• Our submission to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities – warning of the consequences of continuing inaction from governments in addressing problems faced by disabled people.?
• Our recommendations to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child ?–informing their concluding observations, including our call for?urgent action ?to improve protections for children in Britain, such as by tackling online abuse and addressing the deterioration of children’s mental health.?
• Our continuing engagement in the Universal Periodic Review with our statement to the United Nations Human Rights Council.??

• Our highlighting of risks relating to the UK government’s Rwanda asylum policy and concerns about the Illegal Migration Bill .?
• Our report to the UN warning that significant societal trends risk compromising the social, economic and cultural rights of people in England and Wales.?

Alongside all this we have continued to develop our Human Rights Tracker - an online tool that aims to de-mystify the United Nations treaty monitoring process and track how well the UK and Welsh Governments are putting their international human rights duties into practice. ?

You can use the Tracker to find out how we monitor human rights, search the UN’s most recent recommendations to the UK, and see how to engage with the international human rights system directly. We’re continuing to sharpen our focus on assessing the UK’s progress in implementing recommendations from international reviews.?

This important anniversary is a moment to reflect on how far we have come as an international community that values and champions the universality human rights. It is also a moment to acknowledge the importance of all organisations working to protect and promote those rights.?