Highlights of Press Conference by High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, on the Launch of a Year-Long Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

10 December, Geneva-- United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, speaking in a press conference on Human Rights Day (10 December) at the Palais des Nations, called on all national actors, governments, civil society and human rights institutions to take every opportunity during a year-long commemoration campaign to reaffirm their commitment to the values and principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today launched a year-long campaign that leads on 10 December 2008 to the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration. The initiative by the Secretary-General will see all United Nations departments, agencies, funds and programmes commemorate this important milestone of human rights throughout the year.

In a press conference, the High Commissioner said the theme of the year-long campaign, Dignity and Justice for All of Us, highlights the principles of universality and justice which are at the heart of the ideals enshrined in the Universal Declaration.

“We heard this morning … a resounding reaffirmation of the commitment of all Member States to the values, the indivisibility and universality of all rights contained in the Declaration.

“So I hope that today is really the beginning of a year that will have a lot of echoes where the human rights agenda of the United Nations will be very broadly discussed, endorsed, and, more importantly, I hope, implemented,” said the High Commissioner.

She stressed that the Universal Declaration was enacted on the basis of lengthy consultations by all regions and actors from all walks of life.

“Therefore it enjoyed then, as I think it does today, a very broad consensus,” the High Commissioner said.

Responding to a question on cultural relativism, the High Commissioner said that it would be a fallacy to suggest that the universality principle contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a denial of cultural specificity.

Quite the opposite, the High Commissioner added, in prohibiting discrimination of all forms and in protecting the fundamental human dignity as the core principle of the Declaration, cultural specificity is protected.

The High Commissioner pointed out that while fundamental human rights are expressed in various communities in ways dependent on their traditional, cultural and religious values, no one can reject, for instance, the fundamental human rights principle that all human beings are born free and equal in rights.

“Cultural relativism, that is any claim that there are either religions, histories or cultures that are inconsistent with the Universal Declaration, in my view, is not sustainable. The fundamental rights and liberties, the fundamental freedoms and aspirations in the Declaration are of a truly universal nature,” she said.

Human Rights Day

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted on 10 December 1948. The date has since served to mark Human Rights Day worldwide. The High Commissioner for Human Rights, as the main UN rights official, and her Office play a major role in coordinating efforts for the yearly observance of Human Rights Day.

About OHCHR

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), a part of the United Nations Secretariat, is the global authority on human rights. It represents the world’s commitment to universal ideals of human dignity and has been given a unique mandate to promote and protect all human rights. Headquartered in Geneva, the Office is also present in some 40 countries. Headed by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, a position established by the General Assembly in 1993 to spearhead the United Nations’ human rights efforts, OHCHR offers leadership, works objectively, educates and takes action to empower individuals and assist States in upholding human rights. For more information please visit http://www.ohchr.org/

For use of the information media; not an official record