Human rights are a set of rights people are entitled to because they are born free and equal. They cover everything from freedom of speech to fair working conditions. Governments are expected to protect these rights, but they can also be called to account if they violate them. This is a new concept that emerged in the 19th and 20th centuries, following social progress such as the abolition of slavery and widespread access to education. Previously, governments were seen as sovereign entities that could do what they wanted within their borders. The idea of human rights allowed for a new kind of relationship between the international community and governments, in which rights were guaranteed by law rather than just by custom or faith.
One of the key aspects of human rights is that different rights are intrinsically connected: enjoyment of any right depends on enjoying many others, and no right can be enjoyed in isolation. In 1948, representatives from different countries and legal systems drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a landmark document that sets out all the fundamental rights people are born with. It has since been translated into over 500 languages.
The UDHR is the foundation of numerous international treaties and agreements on human rights at both national and international levels. Some are binding, whereas others simply offer useful protections for rights holders. Regardless of whether or not an agreement is legally binding, all of the international instruments that support human rights have a common goal: preventing and ending violations of them.