“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” This is stated in Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This declaration was enshrined on December 10, 1948 and proclaimed at the United Nations General Assembly in Paris. This was the first global human rights document and December 10 is meant to be an annual reminder.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted shortly after the Second World War. In this catalog, fundamental rights were defined in 30 articles, which were to apply equally to all people — regardless of gender, nationality, political conviction or religion. These are economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights. However, this declaration was only a declaration of intent. That is, there was no treaty or other safeguards. Thus, no state was actually required to abide by this declaration. Countries were only required to implement and protect the fundamental rights enshrined in the document.
In order to turn the declaration of intent into a legally binding treaty for the countries, 18 years (1966) later two human rights covenants were adopted by the United Nations. These entered into force 10 years (1976) later. Together with the Universal Declaration, the UN Civil Covenant and the UN Social Covenant form the international human rights code.
Human rights are not self-evident, because they are still not respected by all countries or are disregarded. Thus, torture, persecution, forced marriages, freedom of expression, racism, deprivation of liberty, etc. still occur today. This is exactly what the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is supposed to protect us from. However, it is difficult for the United Nations to enforce human rights, because due to the legal status of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the document is only a recommendation. Moreover, the United Nations cannot enforce the observance of human rights, because this would contradict its own principles.
It is therefore all the more important to regularly draw attention to the fact that not all people are treated equally everywhere, or even have the same rights. The organization Human Rights Watch is committed to precisely this and points out in its reports where human rights are being disregarded.
Sources:
https://www.lpb-bw.de/menschenrechte#c63609
http://www.tagdermenschenrechte.org/hintergrund/
https://www.bpb.de/kurz-knapp/hintergrund-aktuell/501387/tag-der-menschenrechte/
https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/aussenpolitik/themen/menschenrechte/01-menschenrechte-fundament