Introduction

December 10, 1997 marked the beginning of the 50th anniversary year of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. When the United Nations came into being in 1945, ordinary people enjoyed little protection under international law. The UN Charter affirmed the dignity, worth and equal rights of each person. The Universal Declaration was intended to set an aspirational standard of achievement for all nations. The Universal Declaration has certainly created a standard for human rights achievement. The weakness of international human rights law lies in the inadequacy of implementation. Many repressive states seek trade, technology or security arrangements from Western democracies. Arab human rights advocates do not regard the Permanent Arab Commission on Human Rights within the Arab League as part of the universalistic human rights movement. This Commission, founded by the Council of the League of Arab States in 1968, has done little to promote human rights in the Arab world.