Dag Hammarskjöld Library at Uppsala University
Other Human Rights Issues
- © United Nations
The human rights perspective permeates the whole UN organization. Virtually all United Nations bodies and specialized agencies are involved, to some extent, in the protection of human rights.
The initial focus on civil and political rights and certain economic and social rights is expanding to include global socioeconomic development. This expansive definition of human rights encompasses the right to:
- adequate housing
- democracy
- freedom from extreme poverty
- food
- clean environment
- education
- development.
Thematic issues addressed by the Human Rights Council include:
- the use of mercenaries
- the independence of judges and lawyers
- arbitrary detention
- the rights of internally displaced persons
- the rights of migrants
- illicit movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products
- enforced and involuntary disappearances
- the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of human rights.
Documentation
An overview of human rights issues with links to relevant UN bodies and full text documentation is provided by the UN official web site, section Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Issues.
Yearbook of the United Nations provides an excellent overview of UN human rights activities with a detailed subject index. A complete collection of yearbooks is held by the Dag Hammarskjöld Library, Uppsala, and the Libraries at UN Headquarters in New York and Geneva. Since October 2008 the complete full text collection of The United Nations Yearbooks is available online at http://unyearbook.un.org/.
Documents and reports from the Special rapporteurs within the thematic mandates of the Human Rights Council are posted at the UN official web site, section Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Human Rights Bodies, Special Procedures assumed by the Human Rights Council, Thematic mandates.
Databases and Indexes
A web portal to human rights issues with li nks to UN main bodies and focal points and full text documents and reports is posted at the Official web site of the United Nations, section Human Rights.
The UN Library online catalogue UNBISnet contains reports, documents and articles related to UN activities with links to full texts for recent years. Subject search can be performed using relevant terms from the UNBIS THESAURUS.
Document search can be performed through the UN official web site, section Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Document Search.
Full text reports and documents from 1993 onwards can be retrieved from the Official Documents System of the United Nations - ODS.