Human rights are recognized as fundamental by the United Nations and, as such, feature prominently in the Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations: "... to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small...". The Organization's prominent role in this area is carried out by a number of human rights bodies (described below), some of which date back to the very foundation of the United Nations.

As an indication of the expanding significance of this vast field, in 1993 the General Assembly created the post of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. An overview of the activities undertaken by the High Commissioner can be obtained from the annual report which is issued as Supplement No. 36 to the Official Records of the General Assembly. A complete listing of these reports can be found in the UN-I-QUE database. The Office of the High Commissioner also administers the communications/complaints procedures available under the various human rights bodies. Statements made by the High Commissioner can be retrieved through the OHCHR Media Centre.

When researching human rights issues, a distinction has to be made between Charter-based and treaty-based human rights bodies. The former derive their establishment from provisions contained in the Charter of the United Nations, hold broad human rights mandates, address an unlimited audience and take action based on majority voting. The latter derive their existence from provisions contained in a specific legal instrument (i.e., the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights), hold more narrow mandates (i.e., the set of issues codified in the legal instrument involved), address a limited audience (i.e., only those countries that have ratified the legal instrument in question) and base their decision-making on consensus. Reflecting this distinction, the human rights documentation posted on the website of the High Commissioner is organized into two databases: Charter-based bodies and Treaty bodies.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights