Human Rights

International Human Rights Day commemorates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the people that have dedicated their lives to defending human rights around the world. For more information and a schedule of events, refer to the UN website.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948 “as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance...”

Documents

Selected full-text documents (for more, search in the Digital Library)

ACM, The functioning of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (1999)
Frohardt, Mark et al., Protecting human rights: the challenge to humanitarian organizations (1999)
O’Neill, William G., A humanitarian practitioner’s guide to international human rights law (1995)
Piniou-Kalli, Maria, Human rights at the dawn of the 21st century (1997)
Saxena, J.N, Human rights and refugees (1988)

General publications

Guide to Forced Migration Periodicals (FMO) (note: see various subsections for “human rights”)
Publications (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights) (in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese)
United Nations human rights documents (Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) (in English, French and Spanish)

Web Resources

Selected web-based information resources (for more, search the FMO website)

International Instruments

Basic instruments
European treaties (Council of Europe) (in English and French)
Inter-American treaties (Organization of American States)
International human rights instruments (Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights) (in English, French and Spanish)