The International Bill Of Human Rights

At its first meeting in 1946, the General Assembly transmitted a draft Declaration of Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms to the Commission on Human Rights, through the Economic and Social Council, relative to the preparation of an international bill of human rights. In 1947, the Commission authorized its officers to formulate a draft bill of human rights which was later taken over by a formal Drafting Committee consisting of 8 members of the Commission. The Drafting Committee decided to prepare two documents: one in the form of a declaration which would set forth general principles or standards of human rights; and the other in the form of a convention which would define specific rights and their limitations. Accordingly, the Committee transmitted to the Commission draft articles of an international declaration and an international convention on human rights. The Commission decided to apply the term. International Bill of Human Rights. to the entire series of documents in late 1947. In 1948, the draft declaration was revised and submitted through the Economic and Social Council to the General Assembly. On 10 December 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted . a day celebrated each year as .Human Rights Day.

The Commission on Human Rights then continued working on a draft covenant on human rights. By 1950, the General Assembly passed a resolution declaring that the .enjoyment of civil and political freedoms and of economic, social and cultural rights are interconnected and interdependent.. After lengthy debate, the General Assembly requested that the Commission draft two covenants on human rights; one to set forth civil and political rights and the other embodying economic, social and cultural rights. Before finalizing the draft covenants, the General Assembly decided to give the drafts the widest possible publicity in order that Governments might study them thoroughly and public opinion might express itself freely. In 1966, two International Covenants on Human Rights were completed (instead of the one originally envisaged): the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which effectively translated the principles of the Universal Declaration into treaty law. In conjunction with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the two Covenants are referred to as the International Bill of Human Rights.

a.      The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights consists of a Preamble and 30 articles, setting out the human rights and fundamental freedoms to which all men and women are entitled, without distinction of any kind.

The Universal Declaration recognizes that the inherent dignity of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. It recognizes fundamental rights which are the inherent rights of every human being including, inter alia, the right to life, liberty and security of person; the right to an adequate standard of living; the right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution in other countries; the right to freedom of opinion and expression; the right to education, freedom of thought, conscience and religion; and the right to freedom from torture and degrading treatment. These inherent rights are to be enjoyed by every man, woman and child throughout the world, as well as by all groups in society.

Today, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is widely regarded as forming part of customary international law.

 1998- the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

1998 highlighted the global commitment to these fundamental and inalienable human rights as the world commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration was one of the first major achievements of the United Nations and after 50 years remains a powerful instrument affecting people.s lives throughout the world. Since 1948, the Universal Declaration has been translated into more than 250 languages (available at OHCHR website at http://www.unhchr.ch/udhr/index.htm) and remains one of the best known and most cited human rights documents in the world. The commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary provided the opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the past fifty years and chart a course for the next century.

Under the theme All Human Rights for All, the fiftieth anniversary highlighted the universality, indivisibility and interrelationship of all human rights. It reinforced the idea that human rights . civil, cultural, economic, political and social . should be taken in their totality and not dissociated.

b.      The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

After 20 years of drafting debates, the ICESCR was adopted by the General Assembly in 1966 and entered into force in January 1976. In many respects, greater international attention has been given to the promotion and protection of civil and political rights rather than to social, economic and cultural rights, leading to the erroneous presumption that violations of economic, social and cultural rights were not subject to the same degree of legal scrutiny and measures of redress. This view neglected the underlying principles of human rights . that rights are indivisible and interdependent and therefore the violation of one right may well lead to the violation of another.

Economic, social and cultural rights are fully recognized by the international community and in international law and are progressively gaining attention. These rights are designed to ensure the protection of people, based on the expectation that people can enjoy rights, freedoms and social justice simultaneously.

The Covenant embodies some of the most significant international legal provisions establishing economic, social and cultural rights, including, inter alia, rights relating to work in just and favourable conditions; to social protection; to an adequate standard of living including clothing, food and housing; to the highest attainable standards of physical and mental health; to education and to the enjoyment of the benefits of cultural freedom and scientific progress.

Significantly, article 2 outlines the legal obligations which are incumbent upon States parties under the Covenant. States are required to take positive steps to implement these rights, to the maximum of their resources, in order to achieve the progressive realization of the rights recognized in the Covenant, particularly through the adoption of domestic legislation.

Monitoring the implementation of the Covenant by States parties was the responsibility of the Economic and Social Council, which delegated this responsibility to a committee of independent experts established for this purpose, namely the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

As at March 2000, 142 States were parties to the Covenant.

c.       The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights addresses the State.s traditional responsibilities for administering justice and maintaining the rule of law. Many of the provisions in the Covenant address the relationship between the individual and the State. In discharging these responsibilities, States must ensure that human rights are respected, not only those of the victim but also those of the accused.

The civil and political rights defined in the Covenant include, inter alia, the right to self-determination; the right to life, liberty and security; freedom of movement, including freedom to choose a place of residence and the right to leave the country; freedom of thought, conscience, religion, peaceful assembly and association; freedom from torture and other cruel and degrading treatment or punishment; freedom from slavery, forced labour, and arbitrary arrest or detention; the right to a fair and prompt trial; and the right to privacy.

There are also other provisions which protect members of ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities. Under Article 2, all States Parties undertake to respect and take the necessary steps to ensure the rights recognized in the Covenant without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

The Covenant has two Optional Protocols. The first establishes the procedure for dealing with communications (or complaints) from individuals claiming to be victims of violations of any of the rights set out in the Covenant. The second envisages the abolition of the death penalty.

Unlike the Universal Declaration and the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights authorizes a State to derogate from, or in other words restrict, the enjoyment of certain rights in times of an official public emergency which threatens the life of a nation. Such limitations are permitted only to the extent strictly required under the circumstances and must be reported to the United Nations. Even so, some provisions such as the right to life and freedom from torture and slavery may never be suspended.

The Covenant provides for the establishment of a Human Rights Committee to monitor implementation of the Covenant.s provisions by States parties. As at March 2000, 144 States were parties to the Covenant, 95 States were parties to the Optional Protocol and 39 States were parties to the Second Optional Protocol.