70th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

10 December 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General Reading Time:  14 minutes

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10 December 1948

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10 December 1948

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a historic document that was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly at its third session on 10 December 1948 as Resolution 217 at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. Of the then 58 members of the United Nations, 48 voted in favor, none against, eight abstained, and two did not vote.   read more…

The UNESCO

2 March 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  18 minutes

© UNESCO.org

© UNESCO.org

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) based in Paris. Its declared purpose is to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through educational, scientific, and cultural reforms in order to increase universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights along with fundamental freedom proclaimed in the United Nations Charter. It is the successor of the League of NationsInternational Committee on Intellectual Cooperation. UNESCO has 195 member states and ten associate members, including Cook Islands and Niue. Most of its field offices are “cluster” offices covering three or more countries; national and regional offices also exist. In October 2017, the United States and Israel have declared that they will leave UNESCO on 31 December 2018. Efforts to keep the United States in the UNESCO promptly started on the diplomatic floor.   read more…

The International Court of Justice in The Hague

1 January 2018 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Architecture, House of the Month Reading Time:  12 minutes

© International Court of Justice

© International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice (French: Cour internationale de justice; commonly referred to as the World Court, ICJ or The Hague) is the primary judicial branch of the United Nations (UN). Seated in the Peace Palace in The Hague, the court settles legal disputes submitted to it by states and provides advisory opinions on legal questions submitted to it by duly authorized international branches, agencies, and the UN General Assembly. Established in 1945 by the UN Charter, the Court began work in 1946 as the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice. The Statute of the International Court of Justice, similar to that of its predecessor, is the main constitutional document constituting and regulating the Court.   read more…

The International Criminal Court

1 November 2017 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, House of the Month Reading Time:  13 minutes

International Criminal Court building © OSeveno/cc-by-sa-4.0

International Criminal Court building © OSeveno/cc-by-sa-4.0

The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal that sits in The Hague in the Netherlands. The ICC has the jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. The ICC is intended to complement existing national judicial systems and it may therefore only exercise its jurisdiction when certain conditions are met, such as when national courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute criminals or when the United Nations Security Council or individual states refer situations to the Court. The ICC began functioning on 1 July 2002, the date that the Rome Statute entered into force. The Rome Statute is a multilateral treaty which serves as the ICC’s foundational and governing document. States which become party to the Rome Statute, for example by ratifying it, become member states of the ICC. Currently, out of 193 UN member countries there are 124 states which are party to the Rome Statute and therefore members of the ICC. Israel, Russia, Sudan and the United States aren’t part of it.   read more…

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