75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH-TV) — The United States will mark the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec. 10 with Human Rights Day by “taking actions to promote accountability for human rights abuses and violations,” according to the U.S. Department of State website.

On Friday, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Treasury imposed visa restrictions and sanctions on 37 individuals in 13 countries,” said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement.

“With today’s actions, the United States is addressing some of the most challenging and harmful forms of human rights abuses in the world, including those involving conflict-related sexual violence, forced labor, and transnational repression,” said Blinken.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drafted by representatives from all over the globe, and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on Dec. 10, 1948.

It set a “common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations [and] sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected,” according to the United Nations website.

It is also widely recognized as having paved the way for more than 70 human rights treaties applied “at global and regional levels.”