Universal Declaration of Human Rights, excerpts

From the preamble:
"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."

Articles primarily concerned with economic human rights:
"Article 23: (1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

"Article 24:  Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

"Article 25:  (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

"Article 26:  (1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children."

Information on the Definition and History of Truth Commissions

Truth Commissions

Definition [from: Wikipedia.com]
A truth commission or truth and reconciliation commission is a commission charged  with the task of discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government, in the hope of resolving conflict left over from the past.

Definition [from: United States Institute of Peace]
Generally, truth commissions are bodies established to research and report on human rights abuses over a certain period of time in a particular country or in relation to a particular conflict. Truth commissions allow victims, their relatives and perpetrators to give evidence of human rights abuses, providing an official forum for their accounts. In most instances, truth commissions are also required by their mandate to provide recommendations on steps to prevent a recurrence of such abuses.

Truth commissions exist for a designated period of time, have a specific mandate, exhibit a variety of organizational arrangements, and adopt a range of processes and procedures, with the goal of producing and disseminating a final report, including conclusions and recommendations. Ultimately, the goals of such commissions are to contribute to end and account for past abuses of authority, to promote national reconciliation and/or bolster a new political order or legitimize new policies.

Historical Examples

South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission - 1995

Excerpt from:  Truth and Reconciliation, South Africa, April 2003 (http://www.doj.gov.za/trc/)

The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was set up by the Government of National Unity to help deal with violations that occurred under apartheid. The conflict during this period resulted in violence and human rights abuses from all sides. No section of society escaped these abuses. 

26 July, 1995
…It is hereby notified that the President has assented to the following Act which is hereby published for general information:

NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION ACT, 1995
To provide for the investigation and the establishment of as complete a picture as possible of the nature, causes and extent of gross violations of human rights committed during the period from 1 March 1960 to the cut-off date contemplated in the Constitution, within or outside the Republic, emanating from the conflicts of the past, and the fate or whereabouts of the victims of such violations; the granting of amnesty to persons who make full disclosure of all the relevant facts relating to acts associated with a political objective committed in the course of the conflicts of the past during the said period; affording victims an opportunity to relate the violations they suffered; the taking of measures aimed at the granting of reparation to, and the rehabilitation and the restoration of the human and civil dignity of, victims of violations of human rights; reporting to the Nation about such violations and victims; the making of recommendations aimed at the prevention of the commission of gross violations of human rights; and for the said purposes to provide for the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a Committee on Human Rights Violations…

Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Peru – June, 2001

Excerpt from: International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), The Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Backgrounder - June 17, 2003 (http://www.wola.org/)

Context: The Commission in Peru took place two years after former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori fled into self-imposed exile and interim President Valentín Paniagua designated a 20-year span for scrutiny of Peru’s troubled past.  From 1980 to 2000, insurgent violence, acts of terror and counterinsurgency tactics resulted in an estimated 30,000 dead, 5000 disappearances, and over half a million people displaced by the violence.  The Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was convened in July 2001 to uncover the truth about this violent period.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission: The TRC, composed of 12 members and an observer, was given a two-year mandate to investigate the serious human rights abuses and violations of humanitarian law that had taken place between 1980 and 2000.  Since its establishment, the Commission has been analyzing the conditions and behaviors that gave rise to the violence; contributing to criminal investigations by determining the situation of victims and identifying responsibilities; drawing up proposals for reparations; recommending reforms and preventive measures; and establishing mechanisms for follow-up.  The TRC has collected some 17,000 testimonies and is in the process of finalizing its report, due out later this summer (2003).
 
In his remarks earlier this month opening the international conference on post truth commission processes, “From Denial To Acknowledgement,” in Lima, Peru, the President of the Peruvian TRC, Salomon Lerner Febres, stressed the importance of truth-seeking processes to societies in transition: “The search for truth after a conflict…can constitute a second, precious opportunity for societies….Bringing to light the truth is not only a way of acknowledging victims and identifying perpetrators and harms; it can also be a way to discover ourselves.”    

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