
Contents
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Norms Norms
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Key UN Human Rights Instruments Key UN Human Rights Instruments
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UN Charter (1945) UN Charter (1945)
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Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
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International Bill of Rights International Bill of Rights
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Other Human Rights Instruments Other Human Rights Instruments
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Implementation Implementation
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Treaty Bodies Treaty Bodies
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Opportunities and Challenges Opportunities and Challenges
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Machinery Machinery
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Key Bodies and Mechanisms Key Bodies and Mechanisms
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Human Rights Council (HRC) Human Rights Council (HRC)
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General Assembly General Assembly
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Security Council Security Council
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Secretariat Secretariat
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Other UN Bodies Other UN Bodies
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Opportunities and Challenges Opportunities and Challenges
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Conclusion Conclusion
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Notes Notes
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30 Human Rights: Norms and Machinery
Get accessNatalie Samarasinghe is Executive Director of the United Nations Association-UK (UNA-UK), where she has worked since 2006. In 2013, she co-founded the ‘1 for 7 Billion’ campaign to improve the selection process for the UN Secretary-General. She is an editor for WITAN Media, a trustee of the documentary foundation Doc Society, an advisor to the Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice, and on the Steering Committees of the World Federation of UNAs and the International Coalition for the Responsibility to Protect. She previously worked in local government and for the University of Oxford.
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Published:08 August 2018
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Abstract
This chapter discusses the UN’s role in creating the international human rights system, with descriptions of key UN human rights instruments, mechanisms and bodies (notably the Human Rights Council), as well as information on other parts of the organization tasked with promoting and protecting human rights. It also considers opportunities and challenges for norm development and institutional advances over the next decade. The chapter argues that while human rights are recognized as one of the UN’s main purposes, with every member state having some degree of involvement with human rights laws and machinery, this area remains a source of contention, raising issues of legitimacy, universality, and sovereignty. At the same time, this so-called pillar of the UN has produced some of the organization’s most transformative successes, at the normative level and on the ground.
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