HUMAN RIGHTS DAY
December 10, 2010
Human Rights Day is celebrated annually across the world on 10 December.
The date was chosen to honor the United Nations General Assembly‘s adoption and proclamation, on 10 December 1948, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the first global enunciation of human rights. The formal establishment of Human Rights Day occurred at the 317th Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly on 4 December 1950, when the General Assembly declared resolution 423(V), inviting all member states and any other interested organizations to celebrate the day as they saw fit.
The day is a high point in the calendar of UN headquarters in New York City, United States, and is normally marked by both high-level political conferences and meetings and by cultural events and exhibitions dealing with human rights issues. In addition, it is traditionally on 10 December that the five-yearly United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights and Nobel Peace Prize are awarded.
Many governmental and nongovernmental organizations active in the human rights field also schedule special events to commemorate the day, as do many civil and social-cause organisations.
The theme for 2006 was the struggle against poverty, taking it as a human rights issue. Several statements were released on that occasion, including the one issued by 37 United Nations Special Procedures mandate holders.
“Today, poverty prevails as the gravest human rights challenge in the world. Combating poverty, deprivation and exclusion is not a matter of charity, and it does not depend on how rich a country is. By tackling poverty as a matter of human rights obligation, the world will have a better chance of abolishing this scourge in our lifetime….
Poverty eradication is an achievable goal.”
—UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, 10 December 2006”
The 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights occurred on 10 December 2008, and the UN Secretary-General launched a year-long campaign leading up to this anniversary. Because the UDHR holds the world record as the most translated document (with more than 360 language versions available), organizations around the globe used the year to focus on helping people everywhere learn about their rights.
Human Rights Day 2010
on
10 December
recognizes the work of human rights defenders worldwide who act to end discrimination.
Acting alone or in groups within their communities, every day human rights defenders work to end discrimination by campaigning for equitable and effective laws, reporting and investigating human rights violations and supporting victims.
While some human rights defenders are internationally renowned, many remain anonymous and undertake their work often at great personal risk to themselves and their families.
HUMAN RIGHTS DAY – 2010
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, is calling for the release from prison of Chinese dissident and Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Liu Xiaobo. On the eve of Human Rights Day, Pillay says Liu Xiaobo illustrates the dangers and abuse to which human rights defenders around the world are subjected.
She says she is concerned by reports of pressure being exerted on private companies, including banks, credit card companies and Internet servers. She says this apparently is being done to close down credit lines for donations to Wikileaks, as well as to shut down the website.
This year’s human rights day, which falls on December 10, is dedicated to the hundreds of thousands of human rights defenders. U.N. Human Rights Chief, Navi Pillay, calls them unsung heroes. She says they have changed history, tackling injustice and discrimination, often at great cost to themselves.
Every year, she says, thousands of human rights defenders are harassed, abused, unjustly detained and even murdered.
She says Chinese Nobel Peace Laureate, Liu Xiaobo, is an example of a human rights defender who is paying a heavy price for his activism. She finds his 11-year prison sentence for trying to improve China’s human rights extremely harsh. Pillay says she also is dismayed at the recent restrictions China is placing on Liu’s wife and on an every-widening circle of associates.
“In recent weeks, my office has received reports of at least 20 activists being arrested or detained and more than 120 other cases of house arrest, travel restrictions, forced relocations and other acts of intimidation,” Pillay said. “These include Liu Xiaobo’s wife, Liu Xia, who remains under house arrest-a house arrest, which in my view is in contravention of Chinese national law.” Pillay says she will continue to hold discussions with Chinese authorities on these cases.
Turning to another topical issue, the High Commissioner says the case of the whistle blowing internet-site, Wikileaks, raises complex human rights questions. She says these involve balancing freedom of information and the right of people to know against the need to protect national security and public order.
She says this is a very difficult balancing act, which ultimately will have to be decided in a court of law.
“Taken as a whole, they could be interpreted as an attempt to censor the publication of information,” Pillay said. “Thus, potentially violating Wikileak’s right to freedom of expression. If Wikileaks has committed any recognizable illegal act, then this should be handled through the legal system and not through pressure and intimidation, including on third parties.”
Pillay says she has read the files released by Wikileaks, which indicate the U.S. knew about the widespread use of torture and ill treatment of detainees by Iraqi forces.
She says she is dismayed that, despite knowing this, the U.S. proceeded with the transfer of thousands of people who had been detained by U.S. forces to Iraqi custody between 2009 and 2010. The High Commissioner says this could potentially constitute a serious breach of international human rights law.
________________________________
United Nations, New York, 10 December 2010 – The United Nations office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, pays tribute to the work of human rights defenders globally. This year’s Human Rights Day on 10 December is dedicated to Human Rights defenders who act to end discrimination.
Video Online Only
Women of Tibet sing for World Human Rights
