Important to ensure everyone has the chance to promote human rights: UK High Commissioner

Every year the world remembers the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and pays tribute to human rights defenders.  This year, UN celebrations will focus on the role of social media in promoting human rights.  On this day, the UK government also reflects on the importance of human rights around the world.

Marking the day, the British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and Maldives said: “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed in a very different world to the one we live in today. But it still reflects the core values of all countries. It is as important today as it was at the founding of the United Nations to ensure that human rights are protected. It is also vital to ensure that everyone has the chance to contribute to the promotion of human rights within their countries and globally. In this twenty first century, social media is an important method for ensuring that this can happen, in the UK, Sri Lanka and Maldives.”

The UK is committed to respecting and promoting human rights as well as a set of universally agreed standards for the fair treatment of all.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted between January 1947 and December 1948 and adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December, 1948.  It is the most translated document in modern history – it is available in more than 360 languages and new translations are still being added.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights will host a global conversation on human rights through social media on Friday, 9 December at 9:30 a.m. New York time.