August 29, 2008

Celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Youth Delegates from 30 countries will meet at the United Nations Conference Room #1 on September 5th to describe how they have been able to create real change using human rights education.

"Truth and knowledge are irresistible forces: youth around the world are working to implement the Declaration, and thus to make human rights a fact, not an idealistic dream," said Mary Shuttleworth, President of Youth for Human Rights International (www.youthforhumanrights.org), who have organized this, their fifth annual, summit.

Co-sponsors of the summit include the Human Rights Department of the Church of Scientology, the UN Mission of Liberia, and the UN Mission of Indonesia, and the youth delegates will be hearing from and interacting with diplomats like the UN Ambassador from the African Union and Jack Healey, Founder of the Human Rights Action Center and former President of the Amnesty International USA.

"When the Declaration of Human Rights was published by the United Nations 60 years ago," said Ms. Shuttleworth, "it was intended to prevent the human rights abuses that occurred during the Second World War. But a key part of the plan for the implementation of the Declaration was that every government would ensure its citizens were informed about it. Youth for Human Rights, and its 82 chapters around the world, are determined to see the full implementation of those rights, beginning with a massive educational campaign."

To do so, Youth for Human Rights has produced an award-winning set of videos on the 30 points of the Declaration, which have been played on 3000 channels in 18 languages around the world. The videos and a lesson plan are being used in schools internationally to teach students what their rights are, and that they need to respect the rights of others as well.

Church of Scientology New York