Ethics & International Affairs Volume 13 (1999): Articles: Human Rights NGOs: The Power of Persuasion [Abstract]

Dec 4, 1999

At the end of World War II, the phrase "human rights" was virtually unknown, whether in the media, in standard textbooks, or as a guideline for state conduct in the emerging international community. It was nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that made the phrase a core element of the United Nations Charter in 1944, even as they pressed for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted three years later. This was but the beginning of a historic effort to make the Declaration a fundamental standard for measuring progress in civilized society. If the principal motivation was the prevention of another Holocaust, NGOs would fulfill the indispensable function, projected by Eleanor Roosevelt, of serving as the "curious grapevine" that would enlighten everyone about their rights and channel information about human rights violations to the world community.

This essay is about the "curious grapevine," an extraordinary tale of how NGOs, through their persuasion, have made human rights a major item in international discourse in the media, state chancellories, and international institutions. NGOs have played the leading role in the creation of international standards and in establishing legally binding treaties incorporating these standards. They are central to the process of adopting implementing organs to these treaties and in providing the essential documentation and briefings to make these organs work.

To read or purchase the full text of this article, click here.

You may also like

Eleanor Roosevelt holding a poster of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Lake Success, NY, November, 1949. <br>CREDIT: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights#/media/File:Eleanor_Roosevelt_UDHR.jpg">Wikimedia</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en">(CC)</a>

DEC 2, 2020 Podcast

The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Look Forward, Episode 4, with Bertrand Ramcharan

Bertrand Ramcharan, former acting high commissioner for human rights, discusses why he thinks the "UN human rights system is in crisis" and details the complicated ...

President Barack Obama chairs a UN Security Council meeting, September 2009, New York, NY. <br>CREDIT: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barack_Obama_chairs_a_United_Nations_Security_Council_meeting.jpg">White House/Pete Souza/Public Domain</a>

OCT 7, 2020 Podcast

The United Nations at 75: Looking Back to Look Forward, Episode 1, with David M. Malone

David M. Malone, rector of United Nations University, speaks about the Security Council, the Sustainable Development Goals, peacekeeping, and more. How can the UN continue ...

OCT 2, 2020 Journal

Ethics & International Affairs Volume 34.3 (Fall 2020)

At the core of this issue is a collection of essays organized and guest-edited by Margaret P. Karns called "The United Nations at Seventy-Five: Looking ...