ABSTRACT
On a cold December night in Paris in 1948, the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), formally proclaiming to the world a new conception of human rights founded on the central idea of human dignity for everyone everywhere. The centrality of the idea of human dignity for everyone everywhere is also evident in Article 1 of the UDHR, which states: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. This chapter scrutinizes the background and rationale for the Punta del Este Declaration while focusing on the UDHR, engaging with the events leading to the UDHR, the UDHR itself, and the subsequent 70 years. It elaborates on the events that have led to the Punta del Este Declaration and the process of its conception, drafting, and adoption. The chapter concludes by focusing on the significance of the Punta del Este Declaration by explaining what the document is not.
