International Bill of Human Rights
- In December 1966, the international community realized the need for legal force to keep the promises to human rights made in 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which sparked the adoption of two international treated: the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
- The ICESR and the ICCPR protects different, but complementary rights at the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural level (the details of these rights can be found in the policy).
- These two Covenants, along with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights combine to form what is known as the International Bill of Human Rights.
- Canada acceded to both of these covenants by 1976, gaining unanimous consent of consent of the provinces.
- These Covenants bind Canada to international law, which if Canada fails to meet these obligations, citizens of Canada can file a complaint to the UN Human Rights Committee.
Citation
United Nations. "International Bill of Human Rights." United Nations Human Rights. Office of the High Commissioner. Accessed August 2, 2022. https://www.ohchr.org/en/what-are-human-rights/international-bill-human-rights
Further Readings
For the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/international-covenant-economic-social-and-cultural-rights
For the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/international-covenant-civil-and-political-rights
For the history of the International Bill of Rights: https://cwp-csp.ca/poverty/human-rights-violation/international-human-rights-instruments/
Overlapping Topics
Federal Government Affairs
Policy Sub-Topic
Policy Type
International Document