Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Commission established a special Universal Declaration of Human Rights Drafting Committee, chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, to write the articles of the Declaration. The Committee met in two sessions over the course of two years.
Michel Forst
During this period, he was involved in many human rights projects, including the organisation of the first summit on human rights defenders in Paris in 1998. This event was held as the world celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with more than 350 human rights defenders attending the summit. The presence of Kofi Annan, then Secretary General of the United Nations, drew significant attention on the event. Jacques Chirac and Lionel Jospin, then French President and Prime Minister respectively, intervened during the closing session, reaffirming France's commitment to the protection of human rights defenders. On 9 December 1998, in New York, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, now commonly known as the Declaration on human rights defenders. That same year, human rights defenders were to receive the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights.