Text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

PREAMBLE

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

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Article 1.

• All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

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Article 2.

• Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

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Article 3.

• Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

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Article 4.

• No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

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Article 5.

• No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

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Article 6.

• Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

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Article 7.

• All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

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Article 8.

• Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

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Article 9.

• No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

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Article 10.

• Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

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Article 11.

• (1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
• (2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

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Article 12.

• No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

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Article 13.

• (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
• (2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

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Article 14.

• (1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
• (2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

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Article 15.

• (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
• (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

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Article 16.

• (1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
• (2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
• (3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

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Article 17.

• (1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
• (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

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Article 18.

• Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

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Article 19.

• Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

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Article 20.

• (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
• (2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

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Article 21.

• (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
• (2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
• (3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

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Article 22.

• Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

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Article 23.

• (1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
• (2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
• (3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
• (4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

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Article 24.

• Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

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Article 25.

• (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
• (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

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Article 26.

• (1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
• (2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
• (3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

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Article 27.

• (1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
• (2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

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Article 28.

• Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

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Article 29.

• (1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
• (2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
• (3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

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Article 30.

• Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

Humanity is on the Brink of Something Amazing

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Justice Fairness War and Peace - It's All Black and White to Ron Paul

By Diane V. McLoughlin

January 12, 2012

The following essay has been revised and updated, adding discussion of issues such as the Martin Luther King Jr., holiday. Readers are most welcome to access it, here:



http://mcloughlinpost.com/Justice-Fairness-War-And-Peace-Black-And-White-To-Ron-Paul.html

_________________________
I  came across this interesting investigative news clip regarding the Ron Paul newsletters, a few days ago:



Having watched the clip, I would say that the mystery of who wrote the offending lines in the newsletters is not completely solved, but it looks like progress has been made.  One learns that out of approximately 240 newsletters only a small percentage contain the inflammatory bits being hammered away at to discredit Ron Paul, and that the time period in question succinctly coincides with the time period when a particular writer was writing for the newsletter. I hope somebody in the media with the resources picks up the trail to find out wherever it leads.

However, while the jury is still out on the letters and who wrote them, there are quite a few things we do know about Ron Paul. Ron Paul trained as an ob/gyn. He has helped to deliver 4,000 babies.

Dr. Paul would donate his time in a Catholic hospital, working for $3 an hour. The YouTube Superpac -produced ad, 'The Compassion of Dr. Ron Paul'
[over 500,000 views]:





Military service:  When Ron Paul got married and started a family, he was called up, and he served during the Vietnam War.

The growing realization of the inequality and unfairness in American society:  Ron Paul once believed in the death penalty. Living in Texas, this would hardly be surprising. But, he changed his mind when he realized that justice was meted out differently toward those from poor and ethnic communities. There were, in fact, two justice systems. One for the rich, or White (or both.)  And, one for everybody else. Innocent people had been found guilty and been put to death - the worst injustice of all.

The War on Drugs is a war on people:  It is Ron Paul's intention that, should he be elected President, he would pardon all non-violent drug offenders.  Why?  Because the justice system is biased, again, against people who are poor, Black or Hispanic. 14% of drug offenses are committed by Blacks or Hispanics. Yet, over 60% of those imprisoned for drug offenses are from poor or ethnic communities. He deplores the fact that the so-called War on Drugs is a war on young people, a war which is unnecessarily devastating lives, families and communities.  Drug addiction is no different than alcohol addiction, according to Dr. Paul.  They are diseases to be treated medically, not punished with incarceration.

'Dr. No':  The establishment smears Ron Paul as an 'insider' - that's who they are talking about when you hear pundits argue the country does not need another 'Washington insider' leading the country - it's code. I could not disagree more. President Obama is a good man, I assume. But, he is relatively inexperienced even now on the devilishly intricate ways of politics; at least, that is my sense of things.  I suspect that it is this lack of experience that, at least in part, has permitted those with ulterior motives other than what's best for the country to hold sway in the back rooms and corridors of power in Washington D.C. Ron Paul, by contrast, is a twelve-term congressman. His nickname in Washington is 'Dr. No'. He has proven himself to be a man of principle who can not be bought.

The quest for empire always destroys the nation that seeks it:
Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul is adamant that these destructive, costly and unnecessary wars must end. They are ruining the lives, or taking the lives, of our young people - percentage-wise the poor, Black, and ethnic communities sacrifice more than their fair share. But no matter what community or strata of society they come from they are the best of us. How can we possibly count the cost of their loss to the nation?  Yet, while they are willing to serve and sacrifice they have been lied to about the real purposes of these wars. Furthermore, these wars are ruining the economy, diminishing our security, and destroying our civil liberties here at home. 

Iran is now on the radar:  Russia and China have both indicated that they will not be able to remain on the sidelines if we attack Iran.  Meanwhile, President Obama has just signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which includes the right to detain American citizens without charge or trial, indefinitely. 

President Obama did not start us down this wide path. But he has chosen, for whatever the reason, to continue taking the nation, and the Constitution, down a dark and perrilous road.

The attacks on Ron Paul are well-done and seemingly compelling. But they all look like a house of cards.  All guilt by association, or somebody said something about him, or claim they know something. I don't see any bullseyes that connect him to anything except love for his fellow man, love for liberty and a higher truth, and a fervent wish for peace, freedom and prosperity for his countrymen.  He is a man with the moral courage to propose forming friendly alliances, rather than waging endless war.  One might find it surprising to realize that not everybody in Washington D. C. or the media necessarily share his views, as can be seen in this YouTube (which will have the final word here) from the 2007 Republican leadership campaign [2,120,612 views]:

Hi

This blog is a new addition to my web writing and publishing. I am a writer and I maintain the website The McLoughlin Post.

Over the past month or so, I have expended a lot of time and energy searching out and going over the various blogging platforms trying to decide what would work best for me so that I could maximize what I can accomplish in a day.

For anybody who has set out on such a quest you know just how many options there are out there and how difficult it is to find information to quickly compare systems - for yourself. I found many blogging sites to be hopeless at demonstrating exactly what features they offer and what great things you can do with them.

Wordpress seems to be the platform of choice for many web publishers, but having suffered a brief sojourn with it a year ago, I do not want to go there because of the frustrations involved in getting up to speed with the code. (But I may still end up there someday if I find it offers features I can no longer live without.)

So for the moment and possibly for a long time to come, here on Blogger I can quickly share articles and editorial (with a 'comments' feature that works! Ugh. Another story.) My main site is great because I can create and add to pages such as my Links and Resources on Gaza, Israel and Palestine.

Hovering over-all is the hope that I can somehow make a living with my independent editorial writing. Once upon a time I wrote cozy pieces about family life. Some of those got published. As my horizons broadened and I began to develop a need to express my political convictions though, things changed.

I began to write opinion articles that expressed the conviction that mankind needs to maintain the integrity of the living earth's genetic codes; I began to defend the rights of the suffering underclasses of the world; I argued for justice equaling peace in the Middle East.

These ideas, ideas I felt were basic and so obvious when one looked at the facts, I was unhappily to learn ran against the grain of corporate media. Letters of mine were published to be sure, some of them. But such views were not welcome in articles - not even on Op Ed pages, where the idea in theory is to publish opinion opposite the majority view of the editorial board or owner(s).

Now, if there was a healthy diversity otherwise of views in the Main Stream Media (MSM), that would be one thing. But over the course of the last twenty-five years things have changed for the worse in a multitude of ways.

Access to information and lively debate over the facts has withered on the democratic vine. I am able to draw a direct line between this and unfettered war. Our minds have been muzzled. It is a very dangerous thing.

So I write. And I try to make connections and find ways to get myself out there which is tough, because you don't want to be found guilty of the capital offense of self-promotion. (How any business got ahead without promoting itself I have no earthly idea.)

I am a proud member of the Alternative Media (aka Alt. Media or Indy Media.) Alt. Media is independent, it is diverse, and it works hard at finding creative ways of reaching you. Feed it. If having an independent media and a healthy democracy is important to you, if you can afford it, those donate buttons are there on Alt. Media pages for a reason. Because we need your support.

Visit often. Come see me at The McLoughlin Post, too.