Eleanor Roosevelt

<h3 >Human rights and humanitarian assistance</h3>

<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eleanor_Roosevelt" title="Eleanor Roosevelt" >Eleanor Roosevelt</a> with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights" title="Universal Declaration of Human Rights" >Universal Declaration of Human Rights</a> in 1949</div>

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<p >The pursuit of human rights was a central reason for creating the UN. World War II atrocities and<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide" title="Genocide" >genocide</a> led to a ready consensus that the new organization must work to prevent any similar tragedies in the future. An early objective was creating a legal framework for considering and acting on complaints about human rights violations. The UN Charter obliges all member nations to promote "universal respect for, and observance of, human rights" and to take "joint and separate action" to that end. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights" title="Universal Declaration of Human Rights" >Universal Declaration of Human Rights</a>, though not legally binding, was adopted by the General Assembly in 1948 as a common standard of achievement for all. The Assembly regularly takes up human rights issues.

The UN and its agencies are central in upholding and implementing the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A case in point is support by the UN for countries in transition to democracy. Technical assistance in providing free and fair elections, improving judicial structures, drafting constitutions, training human rights officials, and transforming armed movements into political parties have contributed significantly to democratization worldwide. The UN has helped run elections in countries with little or no democratic history, including recently in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afghanistan" title="Afghanistan" >Afghanistan</a> and East Timor. The UN is also a forum to support the right of women to participate fully in the political, economic, and social life of their countries. The UN contributes to raising consciousness of the concept of human rights through its covenants and its attention to specific abuses through its General Assembly, Security Council resolutions, or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Court_of_Justice" title="International Court of Justice" >International Court of Justice</a> rulings.

The purpose of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Human_Rights_Council" title="United Nations Human Rights Council" >United Nations Human Rights Council</a>, established in 2006,<sup id="cite_ref-UN_ARES60251_46-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-UN_ARES60251-46" >[47]</a></sup> is to address human rights violations. The Council is the successor to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Commission_on_Human_Rights" title="United Nations Commission on Human Rights" >United Nations Commission on Human Rights</a>, which was often criticized for the high-profile positions it gave to member states that did not guarantee the human rights of their own citizens.<sup id="cite_ref-nytimeseditorial_47-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-nytimeseditorial-47" >[48]</a></sup> The council has 47 members distributed by region, which each serve three-year terms, and may not serve three consecutive terms.<sup id="cite_ref-48" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-48" >[49]</a></sup> A candidate to the body must be approved by a majority of the General Assembly. In addition, the council has strict rules for membership, including a universal human rights review. While some members with questionable human rights records have been elected, it is fewer than before with the increased focus on each member state's human rights record.<sup id="cite_ref-49" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-49" >[50]</a></sup>

The rights of some 370 million <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indigenous_peoples" title="Indigenous peoples" >indigenous peoples</a> around the world are also a focus for the UN, with a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_on_the_Rights_of_Indigenous_Peoples" title="Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples" >Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples</a> being approved by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_General_Assembly" title="United Nations General Assembly" >General Assembly</a> in 2007.<sup id="cite_ref-UN-indigenous_50-0" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-UN-indigenous-50" >[51]</a></sup> The declaration outlines the individual and collective rights to culture, language, education, identity, employment and health, thereby addressing post-colonial issues that had confronted indigenous peoples for centuries. The declaration aims to maintain, strengthen and encourage the growth of indigenous institutions, cultures and traditions. It also prohibits discrimination against indigenous peoples and promotes their active participation in matters that concern their past, present and future.<sup id="cite_ref-UN-indigenous_50-1" class="reference" ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_nations#cite_note-UN-indigenous-50" >[51]</a></sup> The<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Permanent_Forum_on_Indigenous_Issues" title="United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues" >United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues</a> is the UN's central coordinating body for matters relating to the concerns and rights of the world's indigenous peoples. The forum is an advisory body within the framework of the United Nations System that reports to the UN's Economic and Social Council.

In conjunction with other organizations such as the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Red_Cross_and_Red_Crescent_Movement" title="International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement" >Red Cross</a>, the UN provides food, drinking water, shelter and other humanitarian services to populaces suffering from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famine" title="Famine" >famine</a>, displaced by war, or afflicted by other disasters. Major humanitarian branches of the UN are the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Food_Programme" title="World Food Programme" >World Food Programme</a> (which helps feed more than 100 million people a year in 80 countries), the office of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_High_Commissioner_for_Refugees" title="United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees" >High Commissioner for Refugees</a> with projects in over 116 countries, as well as peacekeeping projects in over 24 countries.</p>