On December 10, 1948, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted by the member states of the newly formed United Nations. Member nations from Afghanistan to China, from Denmark to Haiti put aside cultural, religious, political and historical differences and agreed on a list of fundamental rights held by all human beings.
The Human Rights Commission Drafts the UDHR
A United Nations Human Rights Commission was formed to draft the Declaration. The commission, chaired by former United States first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, had eighteen members from all over the world, most prominently Rene Cassin (France), Charles Malik (Lebanon), Pen-Chung Chang (China), and John Humphrey (Canada). Although Rene Cassin is largely credited for drafting the document (based on a blueprint by John Humphrey), the commission solicited contributions from all over the world.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), at the behest of the Human Rights Commission, sent questionnaires to prominent thinkers in every corner of the globe, including Mahatma Gandhi (India) and Aldous Huxley (England). Respondents offered their thoughts on human rights ideals given their distinct ethnic, philosophical and religious backgrounds.
The General Assembly of the United Nations Adopts the UDHR
The road to adoption was not an easy one. By the time the declaration was brought before the United Nations General Assembly in Paris, the document had been the subject of dozens of meetings and proposed amendments. To complicate matters, the United States and the Soviet Union were in the beginning stages of the cold war, an ideological battle with serious implications for human rights around the world.
While representatives from the communist block countries participated in the discussions leading up to the adoption of the UDHR, in the end, they would not vote in favor of the declaration. The six communist countries abstaining claimed that the declaration did not provide enough emphasis on economic rights. Two other countries also abstained, Saudi Arabia (citing conflict with Islamic law) and South Africa (which claimed the Declaration went too far).
Although eight nations abstained (and two were absent), none of the 58 member states of the United Nations voted against the declaration. From that moment on, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights served as a guiding document for individuals all over the world.
Source
Ishay, Micheline R. The History of Human Rights: From Ancient Times to the Globalization Era. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2004.
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