“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
— Eleanor Roosevelt
Be strong. Don’t just read this booklet, participate
with it.
Make the future match your dreams.
This little booklet, including the International Bill of Rights and the map on the back page that shows the Courts to enforce it, is the best plan for humanity ever written.*
As happens from time to time, humanity is at a crossroads. We can either proceed on the path we are on, with war and authoritarian brutes running most countries, and our environment on the decline, or we can emerge into a healthy international community, with an agreement to live together based upon an International Bill of Rights and the rule of law.
This booklet is a plan for humanity: An International Bill of Rights that is enforceable in the courts of all countries, including Domestic Courts, Regional Courts and an International Court of Human Rights. This plan is well under way with the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948, and the establishment of Regional Courts on three continents since 1950. Today, these Regional Courts protect the rights of more than half the people on Earth. (See map on inside back cover).
The real question is what will you do? Will you act to create the world you want, or just regret that you do not have it? You do matter. As Albert Einstein said:
“The problems of the world do not exist because of the evil people, but because of the good people who do nothing about them.”
Do something; read on. You can act in 1 minute and join with others internationally. We can use our new technologies and collectively implement this plan. The key is for each person, nonprofit, business and government, (all represented by the Unite logo) to participate in a collaborative way. Each of us wants a better life for ourselves and our children – with Unite for Rights you can make that happen.
* If you have a better secular plan you have written, or read, from any time in the history of humanity, submit that plan, in writing, for a $1,000 Euro reward.
The Stor i e s We Tell
Create the L i ves we Lea
u n I te for r I ghts
The mission of Unite for Rights is to unite People, Nonprofits, Businesses and Governments to create an International Bill of Rights enforceable in the courts of all countries.
Four ways you can help:
• One, become a “light for rights” on the Unite website, www.uniteforrights.org Our goal is to have 1% of all people, nonprofits, and businesses globally become lights, showing support for an International Bill of Rights. When they do, governments will follow. If you sign your name, a light ignites on the spinning globe wherever you are on Earth. Purple light for a person; Green light for a nonprofit; Blue light for a business;
• Two, also on the Unite website, offer a comment about the draft International Bill of Rights. You can make a general comment or comment on a specific Article. Every comment receives a response on the Unite website. You can help write the rules for those who govern, and create a better world for yourself, your family, and our international community.
• Three, share the story of Unite with friends, family, anyone you think would be interested, in person, through social media, whatever you think of - humans are storytellers; the stories we tell create the lives that we lead.
• Four, make a donation on the website to help Unite for Rights unite humanity. Do something positive in response to the fighting and negativity we see and hear daily. Be a leader.
“Let the voices of all the people be heard.”
— Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela at the UN
t he s tory of an InternatIonal BIll of rIghts
In 1947, after the end of World War II, where 70 million people were killed, Eleanor Roosevelt led an international team “to draft an International Bill of Rights.” The Cold War interfered, and the team switched to an unenforceable declaration, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which was passed unanimously by all countries on December 10, 1948.
Unite for Rights is working to carry out the original intent for an International Bill of Rights. A Version of an International Bill of Rights that you see in this booklet, and on the Unite website, has been updated each year for 15 years, so you are reading Version 15. This document is designed to be enforceable in all countries through Domestic Courts, Regional Courts, and an International Court of Human Rights. (You can see a map of the court system to enforce an International Bill of Rights on the inside back cover of this booklet.)
People in all countries share the same needs, desires, and aspirations: love, family, freedom, education, health care, and they are more willing to live together than their governments. Collaborating through the internet, social media, and in person will enable people of all ages, in all places, to fulfill their wants and dreams through an agreement to live together, built upon the rule of law.
Unite’s plan helps bring out the best in people and limits the worst. Our ability to read and write (unique to humans among all species on Earth), amplified by technology, including artificial intelligence, enables us to cross the line between the impossible and the inevitable to a peaceful world with well-being for all.
An International Bill of Rights (IBOR) is not new, as the following historic moments show, it embodies the current of humanity running its natural course toward rights for all.
Eleanor with Rene Cassin from France working on UDHR
“To forget the past is not only dangerous but impossible.”
— Rene Cassin
l ook I ng B ack to l ook f orward 1
The international movement that Unite for Rights builds upon started 3,600 years ago:
• In 1795 B.C.E., the first list of rights was Hammurabi’s Code, written by a Persian leader on a stone monument.
• In 539 B.C.E., Cyrus the Great, another Persian leader, included rights on a clay cylinder.
• In 1215, the British Magna Carta was the first list of rights on paper.
• In 1762, Swiss-born philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote in Social Contract, that people have the power to write a list of rights as part of their social contract with each other and those who govern: “The People invent the machine; the Prince merely operates it.”
• In 1787, the framers of the United States Constitution voted against a Bill of Rights. An angry Thomas Jefferson, who was in France at the time, wrote to James Madison saying: “A Bill of Rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on Earth, and which no just government should refuse.” Madison wrote a Bill of Rights and it became the first 10 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
• In 1941, as millions died in World War II, President Roosevelt declared a list of rights, “Four Freedoms” for “everyone in the world.”
• Freedom of Speech
• Freedom of Religion
• Freedom from Want
• Freedom from Fear
• In 1945, at the closing ceremony for the United Nations Charter in San Francisco, President Harry Truman told the packed auditorium: “The first thing we will do is prepare an International Bill of Rights” and added “that Bill of Rights will be as much a part of international life as our own Bill of Rights is a part of our Constitution.”
1. This heading is a tribute to Professor David Caron, who said it and lived it.
The moon and earth
The most viewed photograph in history a common home deserves common r I ghts
• In 1947, Eleanor Roosevelt, with the help of others, including Rene Cassin (France), Charles Malik (Lebanon), John Humphrey (Canada), and P.C. Chang (China) created the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). On December 10, 1948, the United Nations unanimously passed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
• In 1950, a list of rights in the European Convention on Human Rights took the “first steps” to make the rights in the UDHR enforceable. The European Court of Human Rights reviews cases that arise in 47 countries and issues orders that apply in all of those countries. This serves as a model for other existing Regional Courts: the African Court of Human and Peoples’ Rights and the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights.
• In 1976, acting through the United Nations, countries ratified the twin Covenants on Economic and Social Rights and Civil and Political Rights as treaties. This was a great stride, but the Covenants are mostly unenforceable and require reports, not law.
• In 1984, John Humphrey, a Canadian and one of the principal drafters of the UDHR wrote: “If the international community ever becomes really serious about human rights, the time will come when the European example will be followed on a universal scale.” The time has come.
• For 2025, Version 15 of an International Bill of Rights is in your hands. The list of rights has evolved from stone, to paper, to digital.
• Trade is key to the adoption of an International Bill of Rights in all countries. Every country in the World Trade Organization should be required to have an IBOR apply in their Domestic Courts as a requirement for being part of the WTO. This follows the precedent for admission into the Council of Europe. To join the Council, a country must agree to have the European Convention on Human Rights apply in their domestic courts. It works.
Eleanor working with John Humphrey from Canada on UDHR
“Our goal was an International Bill of Rights.”
— John Humphrey
t he P lan of u n I te for r I ghts
Governments cannot deny the fundamental rights in an International Bill of Rights (IBOR) as they are not the source of them. Every human being is endowed with inalienable rights. Rights are not gifts from government; they are rules for government.
Unite for Rights is a conservative movement. Unite empowers those who are governed to conserve their power as they write the rules for those who govern. An International Bill of Rights sets the rules for those who govern in exchange for giving them limited power to govern.
As we draft an International Bill of Rights together, the voice of each person carries equal weight. Whether a teacher or a President, it is the value of their idea, not their power or position that matters, and we will find we have more in common than we expect.
Eleanor Roosevelt asked Mahatma Gandhi to determine whether freedom of religion was a human right that should be included in the UDHR. Gandhi studied the question and decided freedom of religion should be included. He wrote to Eleanor: “I thought that the deeper I went, the more disparity I would find. Instead, I found that the deeper I went the more there was in common.”
Using Gandhi’s insight, Unite for Rights brings people, nonprofits , businesses and governments together in a spirit of openness and mutual respect, as part of an international movement, to see what rights we have in common. As former Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev wrote: “We should search for what is common to and unites people and nations, rather than what divides them.”
When thinking about rights for all, try to apply the “veil of ignorance” from philosopher John Rawls’ Theory of Justice. That is, pick your rights without thinking about your situation or country. Make your selection as if you were in any country.
All comments about the wording of the IBOR document appear on the Unite website and receive a response on the site. Any changes made to the document include a reference to the person, or entity, whose comment led to the change, unless they prefer anonymity.
Mikhail Gorbachev author of Perestroika
“The world will not accept dictatorship or domination”
— Mikhail Gorbachev
Unite encourages everyone to participate, but not everyone is needed to succeed. Margaret Mead wrote: “Never underestimate the power of a small group of dedicated people to change the world, indeed it’s the only way that change has occurred.” Unite is looking for 1% of people, nonprofits, and businesses to lead the way — then governments will follow.
To reach 1% of all people, nonprofits and businesses, and facilitate participation in all countries, requires funding. Unite asks people, nonprofits, and businesses — including philanthropies - to contribute 1% of their annual giving to Unite. Restructuring of philanthropy is not needed, but a redirection of a small percentage is.
Unite also asks nonprofits and businesses of all kinds to post their logo to the Unite website. Many businesses want to help develop the rule of law. Now they can.
Unite welcomes the participation of governments and the United Nations. On December 10, 2028, Unite will present what will then be Version 18 of this booklet to the United Nations General Assembly as part of the 80th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
With the benefit of the thinking and demand of 1% of people, nonprofits, businesses, and some governments, Version 18 can be presented as a treaty to the United Nations General Assembly for ratification. This fulfills the vision of Article 28 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which foresees future enforceable documents making the UDHR “fully realized.”
Many thanks for your participation and enlisting others to help implement a plan for humanity to emerge as international community! As U.S. inventor and drafter of the Constitution, Benjamin Franklin, said “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”
If you would like to learn more about the mission, plan, philosophy and practice of Unite for Rights, please review our Blog Posts on our Unite website — #1-10 describe the essence of Unite.
By carrying out the plan described here, we can meet the challenges we face and enjoy a future of well-being with a healthy environment as part of an international community.
Gandhi Law Firm
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”
— Mahatma Gandhi
INTERNATIONAL BILL OF RIGHTS
Preamble
We the people of our international community, declare that there are certain fundamental rights that are inherent in every human being; that they are inalienable for all people, they are enforceable in the courts of all countries, and they must be taught to students in the schools of all countries from the ages of 5 to 18.
SECTION I
FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS
Article 1 Human Dignity
Human dignity is the source of all human rights, and every person who has personally had their rights violated can enforce in court these rights, whether they are in their homeland or any foreign land.
Article 2 Environment
Everyone has the right to a clean and healthy environment, including water safe to drink and air safe to breathe. In addition, both for the benefit of future generations, and for the species themselves, there is also a right to the preservation of species and their habitat. All large-scale development projects shall prepare reports about the environmental and social impacts of the project, and provide the opportunity for public review and comment on the plans for the project.
Article 3 Freedom of Speech and the
Media
Everyone and the media have the right to freedom of speech and expression. This includes freedom to see, receive, and share information and ideas in digital space, as well as on public property, or private property open to the public such as marketplaces. This encompasses all ideas and opinions, whether the ideas are popular or not, and includes the right to freely criticize government, religious, or business leaders through any media anywhere. The right of free speech includes the duty to tell the truth. Any person, organization, business or government that publishes a factually false statement, made in any form of communication, electronic or other, is subject to payment of damages and attorney’s fees for the false statement. Any person or business that facilitates the posting of the false statement on the Internet, or elsewhere, once they have been informed of the falsity of the statement, must remove the statement, or they too are subject to the payment of damages and attorney’s fees.
Article 4 Health Care
Everyone has a right to free or low-cost health care, including pre-natal, vision, dental and mental care, as well as adequate food for good health.
Article 5 Freedom of Assembly and Association
Everyone has the right to gather peacefully, without weapons, in groups of any size, and to hold meetings, rallies, demonstrations, marches, and picket in public squares and other public places.
Article 6 Education
Everyone has the right to education, from pre-school through college or university, for free or at low cost. Parents have the responsibility to enroll their children in school, unless they provide comparable schooling at home.
Article 7 Life
Capital punishment is prohibited. Because chemical, biological or other similar types of weapons are a grave threat to all humanity, their manufacture, storage or use is prohibited, and because nuclear weapons cause mass destruction, including the potential for the annihilation of life on Earth, the use of these weapons is prohibited.
Article 8 Physical Integrity
Torture or cruel and degrading treatment is prohibited.
Article 9 Equality
Everyone is equal before the law and entitled to equal protection of the law. No one will be prejudiced or favored because of their birth, race, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, color, disability, wealth, language, national origin, faith, religion, political opinion, or because of being pregnant. To promote equality, government may take legislative and other measures to protect or advance persons, or categories of persons, disadvantaged by previous discrimination.
Article 10 Freedom of Religion
Everyone has the right to choose and practice their own religious beliefs, including the right to change their religion or to have no religion. Religion and government
must remain separate, and this precludes government funding for religious institutions or schools.
Article 11 Representation and Voting
All power to govern emanates from the people through their choice of representatives and not from military position, religion, caste, heredity or any non-elective title or position. Starting at 18 years of age, anyone has the right to run for office and to be elected through a secret ballot, whose process for collection, and results, can be reviewed publicly. To ensure opportunities for widespread participation in the process of representation, and to protect against corruption, no elected or appointed representative or judge can serve more than 18 years in one position. The government will provide funds and other means to candidates for national office to reach the public and potential voters, as defined by law. Only individuals, not corporations or other entities, shall be allowed to contribute money or other assets to candidates or ballot measures, but individuals may contribute as a group as long as the amount given by each member of the group is made public. The total annual contribution by any individual, whether it is to one candidate or divided among several candidates and ballot measures, shall not exceed three times the median income for the country in which the person resides.
Article 12 Housing
Everyone has the right to some form of housing, with water, electricity, and sanitary conditions, as defined by law. Every able-bodied person 18 to 60 years old who receives assistance with housing has the responsibility
to work on behalf of society at that housing, or elsewhere, while receiving assistance.
Article 13 Work
Everyone has the right to choose their work and to a living wage, as defined by law, as well as the right to form and join a union and to participate in the activities and programs of a union, including the right to strike and to collective bargaining.
Article 14 Physical and Intellectual Property
Everyone has the right to own, buy, sell, rent or lease property. The government may not take private property except for public use. If it does, the government must pay market price for the property. The government must publish a public record for all property within its borders showing the boundaries of the property, including a diagram of the property, and a map showing the location of the property, as well as the name, or names, of those who own a piece of property, including the names of major shareholders if the property is owned by a business. The public record shall include information showing all sales, or change of ownership, of the property, including through inheritance, and any limitations on the property. Everyone engaged in cultural, artistic, or scientific pursuits has the right to protect their intellectual property, as defined by law.
Article 15 Privacy and Information
Everyone has the right to privacy in his or her home, hotel room, vehicle, or vessel and to have interpersonal relations as they choose, with others of any race, sex, nationality or religion. Eavesdropping or surveillance
of private communications and activities digitally, electronically or otherwise, is forbidden by government without a court order as part of a criminal investigation, and forbidden by individuals without a previously obtained court order based on written, stated reasons for why the eavesdropping or surveillance should be permitted. This includes all mechanical devices, drones, satellites, or other means that captures more than a public image for common safety. Everyone has a right to access, obtain, and correct information collected about them, unless such information is part of a criminal investigation or prosecution. Private information about people such as their travels, purchases or location shall not be collected without a specific written request, and grant of permission, unless there is a court order as part of a criminal investigation.
Article 16 Family Life
People 18 years of age or older have the right to marry and choose who they will marry. Men and women are entitled to equal rights at and during marriage and at its dissolution.
Article 17 Children
Every child has the right to a name and a nationality from birth. No one under 18 may be recruited as a soldier, or otherwise used in armed conflict, even voluntarily. Children 17 or younger shall not work more than part-time during school hours.
Article 18 Citizenship and Movement
Everyone has the right to a document of citizenship. No citizen may have their citizenship revoked, nor may
any citizen be denied the right to enter freely and leave their country. To share the costs of public expenditures, citizens have the responsibility to pay taxes. To help prevent the misuse of taxes, any person who provides evidence to the government about the improper use of government funds, will receive 5% to 20% of the amount recovered by the government, plus attorney’s fees and costs, as determined by the Court.
Article 19 Culture
Everyone has a right to their cultural identity, including the right to use their language and engage in their cultural traditions, provided that such exercise does not violate or prevent the exercise of other cultural traditions, or violate other rights set forth in this document.
Article 20 Arrest and Fair Trial
A judicial warrant is required to arrest or imprison a citizen, unless the arrest occurs during or shortly after the commission of a crime. An arrestee has the immediate right to counsel, and to private consultation with counsel, the same day they are arrested. Any charges shall be made in a courtroom open to the public and the media. An arrestee has the right to personally appear in court. They also have the right to counsel, including counsel provided by the government if they lack funds for counsel, and to have the validity of the arrest or detention determined within 72 hours by an independent judge. The public, including media, has the right to be present in court when the validity of an arrest is discussed, and to written notice immediately when this determination is
made. Everyone who is charged with any criminal offense has the right to be released before trial absent a showing that they will flee or are a danger to others. Within three months of arrest, the accused has the right to a fair public trial, including the presence of media from any country. The accused may choose whether the trial is by an independent and impartial judge or tribunal, or a jury of at least six citizens. If a jury is chosen, their decision must be unanimous. The accused has the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Article 21 Search and Seizure
Everyone is protected from unreasonable searches and seizures of their person, home, car, boat, or other location where they reside, and of their belongings such as, but not limited to, a phone, tablet, computer, or other similar device. A court must issue a warrant before the search, unless the following elements are met: the search occurs during or shortly after the commission of a crime, there is a threat of danger to the officer or another person, and there is evidence linking the items seized to the crime.
Article 22 Due Process of Law
To protect their rights, everyone is entitled to fair procedures. No one may be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. Everyone is entitled to counsel in a court of law when the rights in this International Bill of Rights are at issue against the government, a government official, or a private individual acting closely with government officials or on behalf of the government.
Article 23 Responsibility for Violation of Rights
Any private individual, private or public company, or public official, agent, or employee of the government, as well as the government itself, who violates one or more of the rights in this International Bill of Rights, is not immune from liability, qualified, sovereign, or otherwise, and is responsible to pay damages, including attorney’s fees and costs, to the person or business whose rights have been violated.
Article 24 Trial for Violation of Rights
Any person, organization, or company that claims a violation of this International Bill of Rights by government officials, agents, or employees, or any private individual or private or public company, may choose a trial by a judge or a jury of at least nine citizens, to decide if a violation has occurred, and if a jury, two thirds of the jurors must agree to reach a verdict. Any person, organization, or company may also obtain injunctive relief, preliminary or permanent, from the Court, either stopping or requiring an act in accordance with the application of this International Bill of Rights.
Article 25 Independent Judiciary
Judges at all levels of courts, domestic, regional and international, are obligated to provide a fair, impartial interpretation of the rights in this International Bill of Rights. All judges are beholden to the rights in the document, not the person or the nation that appointed them, or any other national or private entity. No one shall give a judge any money, gift, or service other than
a salary paid by the government in an amount that is made public, and no party to a case, nor any person acting on his or her behalf, may speak to a judge about a case without the presence of, or at least knowledge of, the other party. No government representative shall speak to a judge about a pending case. Judicial independence requires financial independence, and any judge must earn at least three times the national median income in the country where they preside.
Article 26
Funding Rights and Courts
An International Bill of Rights benefits all citizens and businesses, it is our collective social contract, an agreement to live together. Therefore, each ratifying country shall annually contribute 1% of its gross national product to an international fund for the creation and operation of judicial facilities and salaries internationally: domestic, regional and international, for the enforcement of rights in this document. This includes the Courts described in articles 27-34. An international non-governmental organization, with one representative from each country that has ratified this International Bill of Rights, comprised of leaders appointed in a similar manner to the appointment of judges on the International Court of Human Rights described below, will distribute this funding with a commitment to the achievement of the rights in this document in all countries, in an independent, impartial manner without favoritism to the country from which they were appointed.
SECTION II
INTERNATIONAL COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Article 27 Composition of the Court
An International Court of Human Rights shall be created when the United Nations General Assembly has opened a treaty for an International Bill of Rights, with the rights as written in this document a part of the treaty, and 50 countries have ratified the treaty, without reservations. The Court shall include one judge from each country that has ratified. Hearings will commence within three years of the 50th ratification. Regional Courts, subject to review by the International Court, and including one judge from each country in the region, shall also be organized through the continued operation of existing Regional Courts and the creation of new ones.
Article 28 Terms of Service for Justices
The judges’ terms for the International Court of Human Rights, shall be 6 years. Judges may serve up to three terms. Regional Courts may set their own terms for judges, but the total of the term, or terms, shall not exceed 18 years. Judges at the Regional and International courts are obligated to provide a fair, impartial interpretation of the rights in this International Bill of Rights. At the time of their appointment, all judges must take a sworn oath that they are committed to the rights in the document, not the person or the nation that appointed them, or any other national or private entity. Each judge shall have four law clerks, selected by the judge, with three of the four coming from countries other than the country that nominated the judge.
Article
29 Procedure
for Appointment of Justices
The judges of the International Court of Human Rights are appointed through a rigorous election process that ensures their independence, dedication to the document, not a particular country, and impartiality. Each country that has ratified the International Bill of Rights treaty, without reservations, may submit the names of three candidates to be appointed as a judge to the International Court of Human Rights. These three names are then submitted to all of the countries who have ratified the treaty at the time a vote is taken. The candidate who receives the largest number of votes takes a seat on the Court. Throughout the voting process, countries are to be guided by the qualifications of competence, integrity and commitment to the International Bill of Rights document, not to the goals of a particular country or political party.
Article 30 Application of the Bill of Rights in All Countries
The rights in this International Bill of Rights are enforceable in the courts of all countries, Domestic Courts, Regional Courts, and the International Court of Human Rights.
Article 31 Supremacy of Rights
This International Bill of Rights establishes a minimum standard to which all people are entitled, and is superior to any conflicting domestic or regional law, or court decision. Any country may enact a law, and
judges may interpret their own country’s Constitution to provide for rights greater than those in this International Bill of Rights.
Article 32 Submission of Claims
No claim for a violation of rights may be brought before the International Court of Human Rights until the claim has first been brought in the Domestic Courts of the country in which the claim arose, including an appeal to the highest Domestic Appellate Court, as well as any Regional Court. A case may originate at the Regional Court, or at the International Court of Human Rights, if there is a showing of strong and convincing evidence that redress from the Domestic Court, or Regional Court, is untimely or impracticable.
Article 33 Hearings in Courts
Once a case invoking the rights in this International Bill of Rights has been brought and admitted at either Domestic or Regional Courts, or the International Court, oral argument, in a courtroom open to the public and the media from any country, shall be the norm. At the Regional and International levels, hearings shall also be live-streamed through the Internet and other channels that make public observation available in every country, and a transcript of the hearing shall also be made and disseminated to the public internationally. Regional Courts may establish their own hearing procedures, including the number of judges in a Chamber hearing a case, but decisions by Chambers must be subject to review by the full Court if a majority of a Regional Court votes for a full Court review. Chambers of 15 judges will
hear cases before the International Court, fourteen of them randomly selected, along with the judge from the country in which the case arises. A Chamber’s decision at the International Court may be reviewed by the full Court if a majority of the judges on the Court agree to review it.
Article 34 Court Decisions
A written decision by the majority of the Chamber, in either a Regional Court, or the International Court, shall be published in an official reporter. Dissenting opinions shall also be published, and each judge may write separately or join in an opinion by a group.
Article 35 Enforcement of Decisions
Decisions of the Regional Courts, and the International Court of Human Rights, are enforceable through the Domestic Courts in the country from which the case arises. Failure of any government to comply with the decision of the Regional or International Courts may result in fines levied against that government, or expulsion from the International Bill of Rights treaty following a vote of three fourths of the Judges of the International Court.
Article 36 Amendment
After 50 countries have ratified the International Bill of Rights treaty, without reservations, and the International Court of Human Rights is in operation, the International Bill of Rights document may be amended, at any time, by a vote of three quarters of the countries who have ratified the treaty at the time of the vote.
The Sower
by Vincent Van Gogh
Sowing rights and well-being for all of humanity.
u n I te for r I ghts
n eeds y our h el P
Drafting and translating this booklet into every language, and building a website for people, nonprofits, businesses, and governments to collaborate takes funding. It is time consuming to consider comments from around the world as to the wording of an International Bill of Rights, but having widespread participation is essential. If you’d like to help, please make, a contribution. Unite for Rights is a 501(c)(3) organization, and donations are fully tax deductible for United States taxpayers.
There is a story in a poem by Joseph Malins, An Ambulance or a Fence?, that foresees this moment. (You can read the full poem in Blog Post #9 on the Unite website). In the poem, people are falling off a cliff. In the town below, the townspeople are deciding whether to build an ambulance to pick them up, or a fence on top to stop them from falling. The ambulance prevails, but a call arises for a fence.
We should not stop building ambulances to respond to the violations of rights around the world. We will always need ambulances. But individuals and businesses, including philanthropies working on rights, are asked to contribute 1% of their giving to help build a fence constructed of enforceable rights. As you have seen in this booklet, much of the fence is built - let’s finish it!
If you have questions, or would like to learn more about the Board, Advisory Board and Staff of Unite for Rights, or volunteer, please visit us at www.uniteforrights.org.
