The United Nations
The flags of member nations fly outside of United Nations headquarters in New York.
© APGraphicsBank
The United Nations (UN) is the world’s biggest, most important and only universal International Organization with a membership of 192 countries.
The protection of human rights, alongside peace and security, and economic and social development has been one of the three pillars of UN’s work since its creation.
Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 – one of the UN landmark documents – the UN has developed a broad range of international human rights standards.
It has also established a range of mechanisms to promote and protect these rights and to assist governments in meeting their human rights obligations.
Amnesty International’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In pursuit of this end, Amnesty International has worked many years at the UN and has contributed to many important developments in human rights protection, including:
The Security Council is the most powerful body of the UN. It has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security and is the only body of the UN that can authorize the use of force (including in the context of peace-keeping operations). The Council has 15 members: five of these - China, France, the Russian Federation, the UK and the USA - are permanent members. The non-permanent members are elected by the General Assembly. Some decisions of the Council are legally binding on all UN Member States. Amnesty International campaigns for human rights to be an essential part of the Security Council work and follows its actions on countries such as Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kosovo, and Sudan, and on thematic issues such as counter-terrorism measures, women, peace and security.
The Treaty Bodies are committees of independent human rights experts mandated to monitor the compliance by States with the international human rights treaties to which they are a party. At the moment there are eight committees in place including the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Governments must submit periodic reports to the Treaty Bodies which in turn make recommendations to further the State party’s implementation of the treaty. Some of the committees can also consider individual cases and carry out confidential enquiries. Amnesty International prepares country submissions and regularly attends sessions.
The Special Procedures are independent human rights experts mandated by the Human Rights Council to monitor a particular country or thematic issue. Currently there are around 40 procedures such as the Special Rapporteurs on Violence against Women, on the Right to Food, and on Sudan, and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Special Procedures work in a number of ways: they can send urgent appeals and communications to governments on allegations on human rights violations; they carry out studies on key human rights issues and also undertake fact-finding country missions.
Amnesty International makes regular submissions of information relevant to the mandates of Special Procedures based on its research and including individual cases.
The UN Secretariat is the civil service of the United Nations. It is headed by the UN Secretary-General (currently Ban Ki Moon) and its main office is in New York. The UN human rights programme is led by the High Commissioner for Human Rights (currently Louise Arbour) whose office is in Geneva.
The protection of human rights, alongside peace and security, and economic and social development has been one of the three pillars of UN’s work since its creation.
Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 – one of the UN landmark documents – the UN has developed a broad range of international human rights standards.
It has also established a range of mechanisms to promote and protect these rights and to assist governments in meeting their human rights obligations.
Amnesty International’s vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In pursuit of this end, Amnesty International has worked many years at the UN and has contributed to many important developments in human rights protection, including:
- adoption of the UN Convention against Torture;
- establishment of the High Commissioner for Human Rights;
- creation of the Human Rights Council.
Read about the 2008 elections to the Human Rights Council.The General Assembly is the main deliberative body of the UN where all192 Member States are represented and each has one vote. It meets once a year for three months and covers a very wide range of issues, including the situation of human rights in particular countries, violence against women, and torture and ill-treatment. The General Assembly adopts around 300 resolutions each year. These are not legally binding on governments, but represent the moral authority of the world community. Amnesty International campaigns for the adoption of strong and progressive resolutions on key human rights issues and their full and prompt implementation.
The Security Council is the most powerful body of the UN. It has the primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security and is the only body of the UN that can authorize the use of force (including in the context of peace-keeping operations). The Council has 15 members: five of these - China, France, the Russian Federation, the UK and the USA - are permanent members. The non-permanent members are elected by the General Assembly. Some decisions of the Council are legally binding on all UN Member States. Amnesty International campaigns for human rights to be an essential part of the Security Council work and follows its actions on countries such as Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kosovo, and Sudan, and on thematic issues such as counter-terrorism measures, women, peace and security.
The Treaty Bodies are committees of independent human rights experts mandated to monitor the compliance by States with the international human rights treaties to which they are a party. At the moment there are eight committees in place including the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Governments must submit periodic reports to the Treaty Bodies which in turn make recommendations to further the State party’s implementation of the treaty. Some of the committees can also consider individual cases and carry out confidential enquiries. Amnesty International prepares country submissions and regularly attends sessions.
The Special Procedures are independent human rights experts mandated by the Human Rights Council to monitor a particular country or thematic issue. Currently there are around 40 procedures such as the Special Rapporteurs on Violence against Women, on the Right to Food, and on Sudan, and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Special Procedures work in a number of ways: they can send urgent appeals and communications to governments on allegations on human rights violations; they carry out studies on key human rights issues and also undertake fact-finding country missions.
Amnesty International makes regular submissions of information relevant to the mandates of Special Procedures based on its research and including individual cases.
The UN Secretariat is the civil service of the United Nations. It is headed by the UN Secretary-General (currently Ban Ki Moon) and its main office is in New York. The UN human rights programme is led by the High Commissioner for Human Rights (currently Louise Arbour) whose office is in Geneva.
What Amnesty International is doing at the UN
- Amnesty International regularly campaigns on selected country and thematic issues and organizes
- lobbying of governments, in capitals and through their permanent missions in Geneva, New York and Brussels, to get human rights concerns included in the work at the main UN bodies, e.g. at the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Human Rights Council and ensure effective action on urgent human rights issues.
- Amnesty International also makes regular submissions of information and briefings on both country specific and thematic issues, e.g. to Special Procedures, Treaty Bodies and the Human Rights Council.
- Amnesty International campaigns for the universal ratification and effective implementation of international human rights treaties and standards as well as campaigning for new ones.
- Amnesty International is also active in lobbying for institutional reform of the UN to achieve a strong and effective UN for the promotion and protection of human rights, e.g. reform of the Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures, institution-building of the Human Rights Council, and a stronger UN agency on women’s rights.
- Amnesty international’s work at the UN is carried out by Amnesty International’s membership in more than 35 countries as well as by its representatives to the UN in New York and Geneva.
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