Conference urges reaffirmation and update of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The General Council, together with the Ombudsman’s office, hosted the conference “Human Rights in a Changing Era” on Wednesday as part of International Human Rights Day. Political science professor Joan Subirats examined the continued relevance of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and argued for its reaffirmation and careful updating to meet contemporary challenges.

Subirats recalled that the Declaration and the United Nations emerged from the upheaval of the Second World War and called that founding moment “decisive” for humanity. He noted that Andorra’s Constitution explicitly incorporates the Declaration in Article 5, a reason to assess whether the text still has practical force and whether it remains worth defending today.

While recognising major advances since 1948, Subirats said the original text leaves out issues now central to rights debates: the climate emergency, gender-based violence, LGBTI rights and the situation of indigenous peoples. He also pointed out that many current UN member states did not exist as independent countries in 1948, and that institutions have had to reinterpret the Declaration over time.

Subirats warned of worrying global trends, including a rise in unilateralism and a weakening of the multilateral framework that underpins the Declaration. He cited reduced engagement by key actors — for example in agencies such as UNHCR and through diminished UN funding — as evidence of this backsliding, and argued that these developments are a reason to recover the values that inspired the Declaration rather than abandon them.

Among the structural risks he identified for the 21st century were technological control, the concentration of power in a few digital firms, and the impact of artificial intelligence on freedom and privacy. At the same time he emphasised the positive side of digital connectivity: an increasingly networked civil society capable of large-scale mobilisation, citing recent protests over the situation in Gaza as an example of that potential.

Subirats urged that regions and local authorities have a role to play. He suggested that Europe, Andorra and Catalonia can help defend democratic principles and human rights at the local level by reinforcing practices and ways of working consistent with those principles.

Ombudsman Xavier Cañada said that, in strict human-rights terms, rights are generally respected in Andorra and should serve as a compass for public policy and individual behaviour. He stressed that ordinary gestures of respect in daily life are part of human-rights practice and deserve attention.

Asked about serious violations, Cañada replied that his office does not detect flagrant situations in the Principality, but he acknowledged that “everything can be improved.” He identified access to housing as a key weakness affecting Andorra and much of Europe, urging further measures to enable young people to secure accommodation.

The speakers urged a balance between defending foundational principles and updating instruments to address contemporary problems — using today’s tools to confront today’s challenges while preserving the Declaration’s core commitment that law and rights should prevail over force.