Human Rights Day

The international community observes, since 1950, Human Rights Day every year on 10 December. It commemorates the day on which, in 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This year's Human Rights Day is devoted to the launch of a year-long campaign for the 50^thanniversary of the two International Covenants on Human Rights: the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 16 December 1966.

The two Covenants, together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, form the International Bill of Human Rights, setting out the civil, political, cultural, economic, and social rights that are the birth right of all human beings.

On this day, the UN will launch a year-long campaign called "Our Rights. Our Freedoms. Always." to promote and raise awareness of the two Covenants on their 50th anniversary.

For more this year's theme and the year-long campaign, see the website of the UN Human Rights office.