The United Nations and Human Rights: Has the United Nations failed in its determination to support and advocate for human rights?

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Recommended: The creation of the United Nations

I. Introduction
The supporting and advocating on behalf of human rights has been one of the primary principles of the United Nations. Since its founding in 1945, the United Nations has worked to preserve the basic human rights and fundamental freedoms it believes to be deserved of by every man, woman, and child on the planet. Throughout the near seventy years of the United Nations’ existence, it has been challenged with an array of questions, events, and claims regarding the possible violation of human rights. In order to combat these claims, the body has established two organizations to deal with matters of human rights. The first being the Commission Human Rights, was the original organization, founded in 1946. The Commission existed until March of 2006, when it was disbanded amidst controversy and criticism of its member-states having poor human rights records, and was consequently replaced with the Human Rights Council.
Ironically, the Human Rights Council has now come under debate and criticism. The council is now facing controversy oddly similar to that of its predecessor: member-states having poor human rights records. Claims, which will be examined within this investigation, are being made that accuse the Human Rights Council of investigating human rights violations on a political system, and not solely for the support and protection of said human rights. This brings a question to the forefront: has the United Nations failed in its determination to support and advocate for human rights? This investigation plans to answer that question.
The investigation of this question is significant in the overall protection of human rights. While there is structure and methods in analyzing and intervening on behalf of the rights and fr...

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United Nations Human Rights Council. "Institution-building of the United Nations Human Rights Council." 2007.
United Nations. The United Nations and the Cuture of Peace. n.d. http://unac.org/peacecp/factsheet/role.html (accessed December 16, 2011).
—. "Universal Declaration of Human Rights." December 10, 1945.
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