The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(UDHR), approved by the United Nations General
Assembly in 1948, was the first international treaty to
expressly affirm universal respect for human rights.
(5) Prior to 1948 no truly international standard of
humanitarian beliefs existed. Although Article 1 of
the 1945 UN Charter had been written with the
express purpose of obligating the UN to “encourage
respect for human rights and for fundamental
(10) freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex,
language, or religion,” there were members of
delegations from various small countries and
representatives of several nongovernmental
organizations who felt that the language of Article 1
(15) was not strong enough, and that the Charter as a
whole did not go far enough in its efforts to
guarantee basic human rights. This group lobbied
vigorously to strengthen the Charter’s human rights
provisions and proposed that member states be
(20) required “to take separate and joint action and to
co-operate with the organization for the promotion of
human rights.” This would have implied an obligation
for member states to act on human rights issues.
Ultimately, this proposal and others like it were not
(25) adopted; instead, the UDHR was commissioned and
drafted.
The original mandate for producing the document
was given to the UN Commission on Human Rights
in February 1946. Between that time and the General
(30) Assembly’s final approval of the document, the
UDHR passed through an elaborate eight-stage
drafting process in which it made its way through
almost every level of the UN hierarchy. The articles
were debated at each stage, and all 30 articles were
(35) argued passionately by delegates representing diverse
ideologies, traditions, and cultures. The document as
it was finally approved set forth the essential
principles of freedom and equality for everyone—
regardless of sex, race, color, language, religion,
(40) political or other opinion, national or social origin,
property, birth or other status. It also asserted a
number of fundamental human rights, including
among others the right to work, the right to rest and
leisure, and the right to education.
(45) While the UDHR is in many ways a progressive
document, it also has weaknesses, the most
regrettable of which is its nonbinding legal status. For
all its strong language and high ideals, the UDHR
remains a resolution of a purely programmatic nature.
(50) Nevertheless, the document has led, even if belatedly,
to the creation of legally binding human rights
conventions, and it clearly deserves recognition as an
international standard-setting piece of work, as a set
of aspirations to which UN member states are
(55) intended to strive, and as a call to arms in the name
of humanity, justice, and freedom.
1. By referring to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as “purely programmatic” (line 49) in nature, the author most likely intends to emphasize(A) the likelihood that the document will inspire innovative government programs designed to safeguard human rights
(B) the ability of the document’s drafters to translate abstract ideals into concrete standards
(C) the compromises that went into producing a version of the document that would garner the approval of all relevant parties
(D) the fact that the guidelines established by the document are ultimately unenforceable
(E) the frustration experienced by the document’s drafters at stubborn resistance from within the UN hierarchy
2. The author most probably quotes directly from both the UN Charter (lines 8–11) and the proposal mentioned in lines 20–22 for which one of the following reasons?(A) to contrast the different definitions of human rights in the two documents
(B) to compare the strength of the human rights language in the two documents
(C) to identify a bureaucratic vocabulary that is common to the two documents
(D) to highlight what the author believes to be the most important point in each document
(E) to call attention to a significant difference in the prose styles of the two documents
3. The author’s stance toward the Universal Declaration of Human Rights can best be described as(A) unbridled enthusiasm
(B) qualified approval
(C) absolute neutrality
(D) reluctant rejection
(E) strong hostility
4. According to the passage, each of the following is true of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights EXCEPT:(A) It asserts a right to rest and leisure.
(B) It was drafted after the UN Charter was drafted.
(C) The UN Commission on Human Rights was charged with producing it.
(D) It has had no practical consequences.
(E) It was the first international treaty to explicitly affirm universal respect for human rights.
5. The author would be most likely to agree with which one of the following statements?(A) The human rights language contained in Article 1 of the UN Charter is so ambiguous as to be almost wholly ineffectual.
(B) The weaknesses of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights generally outweigh the strengths of the document.
(C) It was relatively easy for the drafters of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to reach a consensus concerning the contents of the document.
(D) The drafters of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights omitted important rights that should be included in a truly comprehensive list of basic human rights.
(E) The Universal Declaration of Human Rights would be truer to the intentions of its staunchest proponents if UN member countries were required by law to abide by its provisions.
6. Suppose that a group of independent journalists has uncovered evidence of human rights abuses being perpetrated by a security agency of a UN member state upon a group of political dissidents. Which one of the following approaches to the situation would most likely be advocated by present-day delegates who share the views of the delegates and representatives mentioned in lines 11–14?(A) The UN General Assembly authenticates the evidence and then insists upon prompt remedial action on the part of the government of the member state.
(B) The UN General Assembly stipulates that any proposed response must be unanimously accepted by member states before it can be implemented.
(C) The UN issues a report critical of the actions of the member state in question and calls for a censure vote in the General Assembly.
(D) The situation is regarded by the UN as an internal matter that is best left to the discretion of the government of the member state.
(E) The situation is investigated further by nongovernmental humanitarian organizations that promise to disclose their findings to the public via the international media.
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15 Aug 2022, 21:00
45%
(medium)
36%
(03:05) wrong 
