Human Rights and Democracy - Official Documents

The UK sees the Commonwealth as an important partner for promoting human
rights. The Singapore Declaration of Commonwealth Principles of 1971 set out the
principle that all citizens enjoy equal rights, including the right to frame the society in
which they live through free and democratic political processes. These principles
were affirmed in the Harare Declaration in 1991, which included a commitment by
member states to respect fundamental human rights. We are determined to
strengthen the Commonwealth’s effort to promote democratic values and human
rights.
The OSCE is the largest regional security organisation in the world. It has 56
members including the EU, the US, Russia and countries of Central Asia and the
Southern Caucasus. We support the OSCE’s work to promote regional stability
through three “dimensions” of security, covering political and military work,
economic and environmental activity, and the so-called “human” dimension,
encompassing human rights, democracy, fundamental freedoms and the rule of
law.
The Council of Europe works to promote human rights, democracy and the rule of
law across Europe. With 47 members, it works through a system of “peer review”
under which member states review each other against their legal commitments. The
UK assumes the chair of the Council of Europe at the end of 2011. We will use our
chairmanship to push for reform of the European Court of Human Rights.
United Nations
The Human Rights Council adopted more than 70 resolutions on a wide range of
issues in 2010. We participated actively in all negotiations, working for strong
human rights outcomes.
The UN Human Rights Council improved its response to situations of concern in
2010. Special sessions of the Council on Haiti and Ivory Coast at the start and end
of the year focused on the human rights of the people in both countries and, in the
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