Human Rights and Democracy - Official Documents

SECTION V: Working Through a Rules-based International System
Effective international institutions are essential for promoting respect for human
rights and the rule of law. The UK works in international institutions including the
UN, the EU, the Commonwealth, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe (OSCE), and the Council of Europe to encourage the implementation of
human rights standards and to strengthen the international response to human rights
violations. We also believe that these organisations could do more to promote
human rights and democracy.
We work to improve the implementation by UN member states of their human rights
obligations under the major UN human rights treaties. We encourage a more
effective UN contribution to promoting human rights in practice and press the UN to
address all human rights violations. We play a prominent role in the UN Human
Rights Council. We give strong support to the UN special rapporteurs, who are
tasked by the Human Rights Council to “examine, monitor, advise and publicly
report” on human rights issues or abuses in particular countries, and to the Office of
the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The EU is founded on a commitment to human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
This was embedded in its founding treaties and reinforced in 2000 when the EU
proclaimed the 2000 Charter of Fundamental Rights as a political declaration. The
Charter was re-proclaimed in 2007 and accorded treaty status by the Treaty of
Lisbon. With the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the 2007 Charter became
legally binding in December 2009.
We support the work of the EU to promote human rights both within its 27 member
countries and in its external relations. We agree with High Representative of the
Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European
Commission Catherine Ashton when she told the European Parliament in December,
that human rights should be “the silver thread that runs through all of our external
action and a gold standard of our foreign policy”.
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