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An annotated Universal Declaration of Human Rights

What is this resource?

This resource annotates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with a selection of websites illustrative of work being done to address particular articles of the declaration.

Why was it created?

1. It is hoped that through the use of the Annotated UDHR visitors will find not only a valuable and informative resource in its own right but one that provides a wider context within which to reflect on the state of human rights as it relates to Australia's indigenous population.

2. The UDHR is foundational to the human rights movement and as such is a pillar of NATSIEW. In having it here we give proper recognition to its status and articulate the principles that direct our activities.

What does it do?

Listed under each Article of the UDHR are the websites of various organisations worldwide which relate to the human right/s protected in that article. Many organisations embrace several (or all) of the UDHR, so be sure to explore the websites of organisations listed under similar articles if your focus is only on particular articles. The sites listed under Article 1 of the declaration embrace many of the principles of other Articles in the UDHR.

The list below is certainly not exhaustive, being a sample of many websites embracing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Australia and the UDHR

"The protection of human rights to promote the dignity of the individual is too important a matter for symbolic gestures alone. It is only through the pursuit of practical and effective efforts to promote human rights that we show our real commitment to the welfare of individuals and society."
Alexander Downer

The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 10 December 1948 in Paris. They drew on great documents of the past, which had set out people's rights - such as the United States Declaration of Independence (1776) and the French Revolution's Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (1789). The Declaration set out individual rights and freedoms for everyone and it was the first time there was an international document agreed to by the nations of the world.

Australia was involved in the development of the Universal Declaration and adopted (or 'ratified') this statement in 1948 - one of the original countries to do so.

The Universal Declaration remains the first pillar of twentieth-century human rights law and the cornerstone of the universal human rights movement. The Declaration is built on the fundamental principle that human rights are based on the inherent dignity of every person and that these rights are undeniable.

Although the Declaration does not have the binding force of a treaty, it has acquired universal acceptability. Many countries have cited the Declaration or included its provisions in their basic laws or constitutions. And many human rights covenants, conventions and treaties concluded since 1948 have been built on its principles.

Modern human rights legislation in Australia can be traced back to the United Nations' 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Since then, Australia has adopted many other United Nations statements of human rights - including the acknowledgement of economic, social and cultural rights of women, children, people with disabilities and Indigenous people.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has been described as a 'living document' because it continues to address the basic rights and aspirations of men and women in all countries of the world. As it clearly states, every person is entitled to basic human rights 'without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status'.

Since the Universal Declaration became international law, many other conventions have convened and many specialized agencies have been set up to monitor, and enforce human rights standards that pertain to specific issues such as the rights of refugees, the rights of working people, and the special rights of children.

Most nations of the world have now ratified the two other central human rights conventions - the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. These two documents are legally binding and were both adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1966. Since then a range of international human rights laws have been adopted by the UN, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

These conventions have also been adopted by Australia and some of the rights enshrined by them have been put into Australian legislation, and their enforcement is overseen by the courts and by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) and the state and territory Anti-Discrimination Boards and Equal Opportunity Commissions.

An annotated Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Article 1

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, 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. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Children

Article 5

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

The Death Penalty

Article 6

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11

Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.

No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13

Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.

Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

Article 14

Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.

This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15

Everyone has the right to a nationality.

No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16

Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.

Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.

The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17

Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.

No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 18

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20

Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21

Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.

Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.

The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

See also Article 25 for related websites.

Article 23

Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.

Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

See Article 4 and Article 24 for related websites.

Article 25

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Welfare Rights & Social Service

Housing

Motherhood and Childhood

Article 26

Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.

Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27

Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.

Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29

Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.

In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.

These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

Did you know...
12-11-1820
It is reported that during the visit to Sydney of two Russian ships the captain of one is saddened by the deplorable state of the Aboriginal population. A visit to his ship by Bungaree and his family is a particularly poignant occasion. At one point Bungaree points to his miserable companions saying "These are my people." Then, pointing to the whole of the north shore, he says "This is my land."
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