The most famous human rights instrument in the world is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Its main essence is the recognition of the inherent value of human life, as well as the principle of priority of individual rights over state rights and its sovereignty. The year 1945, when the UN was proclaimed at a conference in London, made the greatest progress in the history and field of human rights. Paragraph 3 of the first article of the UN Charter speaks of one of the primary goals of this organization - to achieve international cooperation to promote and spread respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, regardless of language, religion, gender or race. This Charter has become an interstate agreement and a binding document for those who have signed it. Created in the same 1945, the Commission on Human Rights under the auspices of the UN was to prepare a special Bill on human rights in order to be guided by it, as a universal norm that serves as an example for all peoples and nations. This Bill has become part of the Charter of this new global organization.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has not yet been created by this act. Moreover, the Bill did not include many items that defended human rights, and many non-governmental organizations began to make proposals and additions. In particular, they demanded that each state that joined the UN promise to make sure that people living in the territory of these countries were provided with fundamental rights - to life, freedom of conscience, freedom of the individual, from slavery, violence and hunger, etc. d. The UN Charter included a provision according to which human rights are the business of all countries. The preamble of this Charter indicates that the united nations are determined to reaffirm their faith in the fundamental human rights, in the value and dignity of human life, in the equal rights of women with men, and of small nations with large ones. Thus began the codification of human rights.
During a special meeting of the UN governing body - the General Assembly - held on December 10 in 1948, representatives of 8 countries, including the Soviet Union, abstained during the vote. But the delegates of this Assembly nevertheless unanimously approved the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the general characteristic of which is as follows. This document defined the list of fundamental rights of every person in the world, regardless of language, gender, religion, color, political and other views, social and national origin, property or other status. It argues that governments must protect not only their own citizens, but also citizens of other countries - national borders are not an obstacle to helping other people protect their rights.
So, the first part of the UN Bill on Human Rights was the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The year 1948 became the starting point from which the international normative model of human rights begins to operate, verified against this document. In Vienna in 1993, participants in a human rights conference from 171 countries, representing 99 percent of the world's population, reaffirmed the willingness of their governments to continue to follow this standard.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights lies at the heart of international law, but in itself it was not initially legally binding documents. However, being a generalized list of agreed principles, it, of course, had enormous moral power for the world community. In addition, states, using it and referring to it, both in a legal and political context, have given the Declaration additional legitimacy at the international and national levels.
Legal principles were acquired only in 1966. Then the Covenants on Civil, Political, Cultural and Socio-Economic Rights were approved. They represent the second and third parts of the UN Bill on Human Rights. Countries that have ratified these Covenants have pledged to amend their legislation in such a way as to protect human rights. Subsequently, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Freedom contained in it was enshrined in other treaties and Covenants. Therefore, at this time, its provisions are considered mandatory. Thus, it is not an ideal to be pursued, but a legal document, the principles of which all states must abide by.