Democracy and human rights: The role of the UN

On 11-12 July 2011, the United Nations Department of Political Affairs (UN DPA), the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) organized a two-day round table in New York on democracy and human rights. The International Round Table on Democracy and Human Rights was part of a series of policy-oriented events organized by the UN and International IDEA on the relationship between democracy building and the pillars of UN work. The Round Table brought together over fifty policymakers, practitioners and academics at the UN Headquarters to analyze the inter-linkages between democracy and human rights and their relevance to current UN actions. The agenda for the Round Table was developed jointly by UN DPA, OHCHR and International IDEA, and was structured around three main sessions:
1. The role of human rights in democracy building, with an emphasis on support for constitution making.
2. An examination of Member States’ perceptions of the UN and other regional organizations’ roles in promoting a rights based approach to democracy.
3. The coherence of the UN’s approach to building sustainable democratic governance based on the rule of law.
This summary report of the two day Round Table presents the key conclusions and recommendations to emerge from the discussion.