The Universal Declaration shows the way to common values and approaches that can help resolve tensions and create the security and stability our world craves."
UN Secretary-General António Guterres
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights turns 75
10 December 2023 marks the 75th anniversary of one of the world's most groundbreaking global pledges: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). This landmark document enshrines the inalienable rights that everyone is entitled to as a human being - regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
The Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 and sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.
Available in more than 500 languages, it is the most translated document in the world.
A year-long initiative focusing on universality, progress and engagement, will culminate in a high-level event in December 2023, which will announce global pledges and ideas for a vision for the future of human rights.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights.
2023 Theme: Freedom, Equality and Justice for All
In the decades since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948, human rights have become more recognised and more guaranteed across the globe. The UDHR has since served as the foundation for an expanding system of human rights protection that today focuses also on vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and migrants.
However, the promise of the UDHR, of dignity and equality in rights, has been under a sustained assault in recent years. As the world faces challenges new and ongoing – pandemics, conflicts, exploding inequalities, morally bankrupt global financial system, racism, climate change – the values, and rights enshrined in the UDHR provide guideposts for our collective actions that do not leave anyone behind.
The year-long Human Rights 75 initiative seeks to shift the needle of understanding and action towards greater knowledge of the universality of the UDHR and the activism associated with it.
The UDHR enshrines the rights of all human beings.
From the right to education to equal pay, UDHR established for the first time the indivisible and inalienable rights of all humanity.
As a “common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations”, the UDHR is a global blueprint for international, national, and local laws and policies and a bedrock of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.
The 2030 Agenda for sustainable development explicitly recognizes it is grounded in UDHR and has to be implemented in a manner that realizes human rights.
The UDHR has inspired many struggles for stronger human rights protection and helped them to be more recognized.
In the (nearly) 75 years since the proclamation of the UDHR, human rights have advanced. However, progress does not mean the fight for rights and equality ever ends.
Whenever and wherever humanity's values are abandoned, we all are at greater risk. The solutions to today’s greatest crises are rooted in human rights.
Rights violations reverberate across borders and across generations. These can be, must be, collectively overcome.
We need to stand up for our rights and those of others.
The UDHR calls upon everybody to stand up for human rights. We all have a role to play.
We need an economy that invests in human rights and works for everyone.
We need to renew the social contract between Governments and their people and within societies, so as to rebuild trust and embrace a shared and comprehensive vision of human rights on the road to a just and sustainable development.
Youth and Human Rights 75 initiative
Given that young people face particular challenges in exercising their rights, while often being at the forefront of human rights activism, youth engagement is a key component of the initiative. To ensure such engagement, OHCHR established a Youth Advisory Group, which participates in the design, implementation and follow-up of Human Rights 75 activities.
Find out more about these 12 remarkable young people
