International institutions and human rights

The essentials

After the Second World War, states created the United Nations (UN) through the UN Charter, signed at San Francisco in 1945; the UN came into existence on 24 October 1945. Its aims include maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting respect for human rights. The UN and related bodies have built a large system of human rights law and monitoring.

Key points

• Six principal organs: General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice, Secretariat.
• Human Rights Council (2006): replaced the Commission on Human Rights; reviews the human rights record of every UN member through the Universal Periodic Review.
• Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): leads UN human rights work.
• Treaty bodies: committees of experts that monitor particular treaties, such as the Human Rights Committee under the ICCPR, and the committees under CEDAW and the CRC.
• Specialised agencies: International Labour Organization (1919) on workers' rights; UNESCO on education and culture; WHO on health. UNICEF works for children.
• Regional systems: the European Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American system and the African system. Asia has no comparable regional human rights court.
• Humanitarian law: the Geneva Conventions protect civilians, prisoners of war and the wounded during armed conflict; the International Committee of the Red Cross plays a key role.

Exam tips

• Memorise the six organs; questions often ask which is the "principal judicial organ" (the ICJ).
• Distinguish the Human Rights Council (UN body of states) from the Human Rights Committee (treaty body of experts).

Common mistakes

• Saying the Human Rights Council was created in 1945; it was created in 2006.
• Thinking the UN can enforce human rights directly inside every country like a national court.