Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(Top Posts Philosophy (General) 022201)

Adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on
December 10, 1948:

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, jus-
tice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbar-
ous 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 aspir-
ation 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 hu-
man person and in the equal rights of men and women and have deter-
mined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger
freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in coopera-
tion 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 UNI-
VERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common stan
dard 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.

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.

Article 2.
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declar-
ation, 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, nonselfgov-
erning or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3.
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4.
No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade
shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5.
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment.

Article 6.
Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the
law.

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 incite-
ment to such discrimination.

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 con-
stitution or by law.

Article 9.
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

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.

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 inter-
national 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.

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.

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.

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 aris-
ing from nonpolitical crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and prin-
ciples of the United Nations.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Article 19.
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right in-
cludes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive
and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of fron-
tiers.

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.

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 equiv-
alent free voting procedures.

Article 22.
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is en-
titled to realization, through national effort and international cooperation and
in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the eco-
nomic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free
development of his personality.

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.

Article 24.
Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of
working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25.
(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and
wellbeing 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.

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 com-
pulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally avail-
able 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 person-
ality 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.

Article 27.
(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the com-
munity, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its ben-
efits.

(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material inter-
ests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he
is the author.

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.

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.

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.