International & Foreign Law

UNHCR : The UN Refugee Agency.
Refworld is the leading source of information necessary for making quality decisions on refugee status. It contains a vast collection of reports and information relating to situations in countries of origin, policy documents and positions, and documents relating to international and national legal frameworks.

This is a link to the 9 core international human rights instruments. Each of these instruments has established a committee of experts to monitor implementation of the treaty provisions by its States parties. Some of the treaties are supplemented by optional protocols dealing with specific concerns whereas the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture establishes a committee of experts.

In addition to the International Bill of Rights and the core human rights treaties, there are many other universal instruments relating to human rights. This is a link to a non-exhaustive selection of those instruments.

Who we are
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights) is the leading UN entity on human rights. The General Assembly entrusted both the High Commissioner and her Office with a unique mandate to promote and protect all human rights for all people. The United Nations human rights programme aims to ensure that the protection and enjoyment of human rights is a reality in the lives of all people. UN Human Rights also plays a crucial role in safeguarding the integrity of the three interconnected pillars of the United Nations – peace and security, human rights and development.

International arbitral and judicial awards are of considerable importance, for they are a "subsidiary means for the determination of the rules of law" as provided in Article 38 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice. They are also important from the point of view of the progressive development of international law, a task which Article 13 of the Charter places under the responsibility of the General Assembly of the United Nations.