Today is Human Rights Day.
On this Human Rights Day, I congratulate the States and peoples of the United Nations on a remarkable record of achievements in the promotion and defence of human rights. Let us make the next century one of tangible and universal realization of human rights. The Assembly has proclaimed 2001 as the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations, an initiative spearheaded by the President of Iran. By its provisions, the Assembly would invite Governments, the UN system and other relevant international and non-governmental organizations to continue and further intensify planning and organizing appropriate cultural, educational and social programmes to promote the concept of dialogue among civilizations, including through organizing conferences and seminars and disseminating information and scholarly material on the subject. In August 1999, he appointed Giandomenico Picco as his Personal Representative for the United Nations Year, to assist him in preparing for the observance.