Preamble section 8:
NOW, THEREFORE, THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, Proclaims this Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Drafting History

The Third Committee changed the title of the document from the International Declaration of Human Rights to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in order to emphasize that the Declaration was directed to common people and not to the states or governments that represented them. During the drafting process this goal was underlined when a Chinese proposal to add the word "peoples" before the word "nations" as part of the British and Lebanese proposal to proclaim the Declaration as "a common standard of achievement for all nations" was accepted. In addition, the Egyptian delegation proposed that the words "both among Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction" be added in order to include all peoples living under colonial rule.

Interestingly, the issue of the legal nature of the Declaration did arise during the deliberations of the Drafting Committee. At one point, Rene Cassin proposed to begin the Proclamation in the same manner as the Charter, but this proposal was dismissed by Eleanor Rooselvelt on the basis that "it would be misleading to give it the form of an international treaty."( Morsink, 321)


Peter Danchin, Columbia University