Human Rights and Cultural Diversity

A/RES/72/170No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 72bHuman rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, published in 2018.

What other versions does this mandate have?

16 versions · 2000–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/205

2025A/RES/80/205Human rights and cultural diversityLatestCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/78/201Human rights and cultural diversityCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/76/162Human rights and cultural diversityCompare with previous version
2020A/RES/74/159Human rights and cultural diversityCompare with previous version
2018A/RES/72/170Human rights and cultural diversityCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

4 topics

Cultural Pluralism Human Rights Intercultural Communication Tolerance

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

1 report of the Secretary-General submitted under this mandate, 2019.

2019A/74/212Human rights and cultural diversity report of the Secretary-General

Identified automatically from the metadata in each report’s UN Digital Library catalogue record.

What does this mandate say?

25 operative paragraphs

Affirms the importance for all peoples and nations to hold, develop and preserve their cultural heritage and traditions in a national and international atmosphere of peace, tolerance and mutual respect;

Emphasizes the important contribution of culture to development and the achievement of national development objectives and internationally agreed development goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals;

Recalls that, as expressed in the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity,5 no one may invoke cultural diversity to infringe upon human rights guaranteed by international law, or to limit their scope;

Also recalls the adoption on 25 September 2015 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in which Member States acknowledged the natural and cultural diversity of the world and recognized that all cultures and civilizations can contribute to, and are crucial enablers of, sustainable development;

Recognizes the importance given to cultural diversity in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including in Sustainable Development Goal 4, related to ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all;

Also recognizes the right of everyone to take part in cultural life and to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications;

Affirms that the international community should strive to respond to the challenges and opportunities posed by globalization in a manner that ensures respect for the cultural diversity of all;

Expresses its determination to prevent and mitigate cultural homogenization in the context of globalization, through increased intercultural exchange guided by the promotion and protection of cultural diversity;

Affirms that intercultural dialogue essentially enriches the common understanding of human rights and that the benefits to be derived from the encouragement and development of international contacts and cooperation in the cultural fields are important;

Recalls the recognition at the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance of the necessity of respecting and maximizing the benefits of diversity within and among all nations in working together to build a harmonious and productive future by putting into practice and promoting values and principles such as justice, equality and non-discrimination, democracy, fairness and friendship, tolerance and respect within and among communities and nations, in particular through public information and educational programmes to raise awareness and understanding of the benefits of cultural diversity, including programmes in which the public authorities work in partnership with international and non-governmental organizations and other sectors of civil society;

Emphasizes that dialogue among religions, cultures and civilizations on the basis of equal dignity should be enhanced, through supporting efforts made at the international level towards reducing confrontation, suppressing xenophobia and promoting respect for diversity, and in that regard also emphasizes that States should oppose all attempts at uniculturalism or the imposition of particular models of social or cultural systems and promote dialogue among civilizations, a culture of peace and interfaith dialogue, which will contribute towards peace, security and development;

Welcomes the activities of the Non-Aligned Movement Centre for Human Rights and Cultural Diversity in Tehran, and acknowledges the important role that the Centre plays in the promotion of the universality of all human rights, as well as their realization;

Recognizes that respect for cultural diversity and the cultural rights of all enhances cultural pluralism, contributing to a wider exchange of knowledge and understanding of cultural background, advancing the application and enjoyment of universally accepted human rights throughout the world and fostering stable, friendly relations among peoples and nations worldwide;

Emphasizes that the promotion of cultural pluralism and tolerance at the national, regional and international levels is important for enhancing respect for cultural rights and cultural diversity;

Also emphasizes that tolerance and respect for diversity facilitate the universal promotion and protection of human rights, including gender equality and the enjoyment of all human rights by all, and underlines the fact that tolerance and respect for cultural diversity and the universal promotion and protection of human rights are mutually supportive;

Urges all actors on the international scene to build an international order based on inclusion, justice, equality and equity, human dignity, mutual understanding and promotion of and respect for cultural diversity and universal human rights, and to reject all doctrines of exclusion based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;

Calls upon States, relevant international organizations and non-governmental organizations to support and embark on intercultural initiatives on human rights in order to promote all human rights, thereby enriching their universality;

Urges States to ensure that their political and legal systems reflect the multicultural diversity within their societies and, where necessary, to improve democratic institutions so that they are more fully participatory and avoid marginalization and exclusion of, and discrimination against, specific sectors of society;

Calls upon States, international organizations and United Nations agencies, and invites civil society, including non-governmental organizations, to recognize and promote respect for cultural diversity for the purpose of advancing the objectives of peace, development and universally accepted human rights;

Stresses the necessity of freely using the media and new information and communications technologies to create the conditions for a renewed dialogue among cultures and civilizations;

Requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to bear in mind fully the issues raised in the present resolution in the course of its activities for the promotion and protection of human rights;

Also requests the Office of the High Commissioner, and invites the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, to support initiatives aimed at promoting intercultural dialogue on human rights;

Urges relevant international organizations to conduct studies on how respect for cultural diversity contributes to fostering international solidarity and cooperation among all nations;

Requests the Secretary-General to prepare a report on the implementation of the present resolution, including efforts undertaken at the national, regional and international levels regarding the recognition and importance of cultural diversity among all peoples and nations in the world and taking into account the views of Member States, relevant United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations, and to submit the report to the General Assembly at its seventy-fourth session;

Decides to continue consideration of the question at its seventy-fourth session under the sub-item entitled “Human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms” of the item entitled “Promotion and protection of human rights”.

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