Sixty Years of Human Rights

Voice 1:
Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Marina Santee.

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And I’m Steve Myersco. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

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On December 10th 1948, leaders from around the world signed a historic agreement. It aimed to protect the freedom of all humans. This was the birth of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

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The Universal Declaration of Human Rights describes all the rights that people should have. It aims to give everyone in the world the same rights and freedoms. The document was published by the United Nations.

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The United Nations was established in 1945. The terrible events of the Second World War were still in everyone’s minds. The United Nations aimed to stop such evil from happening again. Governments from around the world agreed this common statement:

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‘We the people of the United Nations aim… to re-establish faith in basic human rights and the worth of the human person. We also work for equal rights for men and women, and for nations large and small.’

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This was why they wanted to create the human rights declaration. The writers of the document included experts from all around the world.

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Hernán Santa Cruz was one member of the group. He was from Chile, in South America. Later, he described the day the declaration was presented to the world.

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‘I knew that I was a part of a truly important and historic event. We had reached an agreement on the great value of the human person… In the room where the document was presented ... there was an atmosphere of real togetherness. We were men and women from every part of the world. I have not seen anything like it in any international meeting since.’

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The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, or UDHR contains a list of thirty points called ‘articles’. Each article describes a human right. They cover a lot of different issues: education, the law, expressing opinions, employment, religion, and many more. The UDHR is now the most translated document in the world. People can read it in over three hundred [300] languages. Here are just a few examples.

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Since 1948, the UDHR has become part of international law. But many people still live without the rights described in the document. People around the world are struggling to defend these rights.

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Kailash Satyarthi lives in India. He has worked hard to protect the rights of children. He has helped to rescue children from hard working jobs. He thinks education is very important for young people. But Kailash is not just concerned for Indian children. He has continued his work around the world. In 1999, he created the Global Campaign for Education. This encourages governments to provide free and quality education to its children. Mr Satyarthi said,

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‘Now people know that education is important in gaining their freedom. Education is key to their human rights. It is also key to helping them out of poverty. Education is a basic human right.’

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The right to education is stated in Article twenty-six [26] of the UDHR. It says,

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‘Everyone has the right to education. Basic education should be free. You should be able to train in a job or continue your studies as far as you wish. At school, you should be able to develop all your character and skills. You should also be taught to respect other people.’