Att # 1 A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is appropriate to examine how it has affected our lives and the challenges that lie ahead in fulfilling its noble principles. It was born out of the depths of human desperation following World War II, when human beings discovered how far they could go to dehumanise one another. Now, a half century later, the majority of people on the globe freely choose their own governments. And those democratic governments know that they are accountable to the people who elected them and are bound to protect the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration. This Declaration is one of the most important documents of the 20th century, indeed of human history, for it represents the first time men and women sought to articulate the core aspirations of all the world s people. The authors of the Universal Declaration struggled to understand and harmonise their differing cultural traditions and convictions during a three-year debate that culminated in a set of rights recognised by all as transcending national, social, and cultural boundaries. The 18 delegates who met under the wise, compassionate leadership of Eleanor Roosevelt and framed the Universal Declaration did not refer simply to men, or to the privileged, or to any specific race or religion. The language of the document clearly states: All human beings are born free and equal. On December 10, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration without a single dissenting vote. Over the past half century, the Declaration's 30 articles have entered the consciousness of people around the world. They are now invoked routinely in constitutions and courts. They set a standard against which we must all now measure ourselves. Threats to freedom persist, and human rights are still at risk. In the United States, we have not completely purged ourselves of bigotry and intolerance. Elsewhere, democracy has yet to take root; in other places those roots are still shallow. Societies are besieged by forces ranging from drug cartels to organised crime. Too many women in the world suffer from wide-ranging injustices. The right to worship according to one s conscience is not universally honoured. Even as powerful forces of the information age are chipping away at the barriers, bringing us closer together, there are still attempts to keep people locked in and ideas locked out. And in too many countries, the rule of law, including the protection of minority rights, is not guaranteed. The new born child does not know how to hate. That has to be learned. It is just as easy to nurture the values of love and respect to ensure that all children have the opportunity to allow their innate capabilities to flourish, to give strength to the human spirit. There is no better way to honour the great citizens of the world who gave us this remarkable gift, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Bill Clinton President of the United States

Issues of Democracy USIA Electronic Journal, Vol. 3, No. 3, October 1998