A Brief Human Rights Timeline
Explore the Brief Human Rights Timeline to trace the evolution of ethical behaviour, justice, and human dignity across civilizations.
1760 BCE
In Babylon King Hammurabi draws up the 鈥楥ode of Hammurabi鈥, an early legal document that promises to 鈥榤ake justice reign in the Kingdom and promote the good of the people.鈥
c. 528 BCE - 486 BCE
In India, Gautama Buddha advocates morality, reverence for life, non-violence and right conduct.
500 BCE
Confucian teaching develops based on 'jen' or benevolence and respect for other people.
27 BCE - 476 CE
Roman Empire develops the concepts of natural law and the rights of citizens.
c. 26 - 33 CE
In Palestine, Jesus Christ preaches morality, tolerance, justice, forgiveness and love. The Christian New Testament teaches equality before God: 'In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female.'
613 - 632
In Saudi Arabia, Prophet Mohammed teaches the principles of equality, justice and compassion revealed in the Qur鈥櫮乶.
1215
Britain's King John is forced by his lords to sign the Magna Carta, acknowledging that free men are entitled to judgment by their peers and that even a King is not above the law. It also stated that taxes could not be demanded without first obtaining the consent of 鈥榯he realm.鈥
1583 - 1645
Hugo Grotius, Dutch jurist credited with the birth of international law, speaks of brotherhood of humankind and the need to treat all people fairly.
1689
In England, Parliament adopts the Bill of Rights that curtails the power of the monarch and includes freedom from torture and from punishment without trial. The Bill sets out that it is the job of government to represent the people and their rights.
1776
US Declaration of Independence proclaims that 'all men are created equal' and endowed with certain inalienable rights.
1789
In France the National Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which guarantees the rights to liberty, equality, property, security, and resistance to oppression.
1791
The United States Congress adopts their Bill of Rights, amending the US Constitution to include rights to trial by jury, freedom of expression, speech, belief and assembly.
1833
The British Parliament abolishes slavery through the Slavery Abolition Act.
1945
The United Nations is created 鈥榯o affirm the dignity and worth of every human person.鈥
1948
The United Nations adopts the .
1951
The ('The Refugee Convention') is adopted and opened for signature. It defines who a refugee is and what the rights and legal obligations of states are in relation to them.
1965
The (CERD) is adopted and opened for signature. It is introduced to eliminate racial discrimination and promote understanding among all races.
1966
The (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) are adopted and opened for signature.
1979
The (CEDAW) is adopted and opened for signature. It is introduced to prevent discrimination against, and to promote the rights of, women.
鈥1984
In Australia, the Sex Discrimination Act comes into force.
1984
The is adopted and opened for signature.
1986
In Australia, the Human Rights Commission Act is enacted, which establishes a national human rights commission, today known as the 黑料情报站.
1989
The is adopted and opened for signature.
1992
In Australia, the Disability Discrimination Act comes into force.
2004
In Australia, the Age Discrimination Act comes into force.
2006 - 2007
The is adopted (2006) and opened for signature (2007).
2007
The is adopted by the United Nations in 2007, and the Australian Government announced its support for the Declaration in 2009.
2011
The United Nation adopts the United Nations .
2013
The first is appointed in Australia.
Further reading
- Understand essential information on the development of human rights law through our Human Rights Explained factsheets.
- Explore accurate statistics and easy to understand information on key areas of the 黑料情报站鈥檚 work.
- Comprehend What are human rights?.