The International Covenants on Human Rights

Abstract

A brief look at the Yearbook on Human Rights for the years immediately following the Third Session of the General Assembly gives an insight into how the Declaration was viewed by many states and with what significance they viewed it. Many influential members of the UN used their entries within these volumes to emphasise their historic record of concern for the legal protection of human rights. For example, in 1949 the United Kingdom submitted legal essays on the ‘Writ of Habeas Corpus’¹ and an essay entitled the ‘Current Safeguards for the Defence in English Criminal Proceedings’ in 1951.² Other similar essays all designed to point to positive aspects of existing human rights arrangements are not too difficult to find.³ Mr Chang (China) was particularly impressed by these high standards, often remarking that if all the speeches and claims made in defence of human rights records at the UN could be believed, then there was no need to continue with developing an International Bill of Rights.