Protection from torture and slavery, arbitrary detention or punishment. Respect for private and family life, freedom of conscience, speech and association. Equal treatment under the law. The right to asylum when in fear of persecution. Notwithstanding all the rows and misinformation about particular cases, these are the precious values in the Refugee Convention, Convention on Human Rights and Human Rights Act - values worth fighting for, values millions died for and for which people still struggle all over the world.
We will all have our own ways of marking this important day. I shall be thinking of a wise and kind North London professor who sadly passed away last year. I once spoke to a group of his friends who promptly engaged in a lively debate about the dangers of human rights protection for terrorist suspects. My friend stood up and addressed the room:
"My wife was in a concentration camp. I was in a labour camp. I don't need to think too deeply about why I believe in human rights."
In a week when politicians of different stripes have asserted national identity and sovereignty, perhaps this is the moment to remember universal values and the ultimate sovereignty of the human being. In the wartime words of Winston Churchill:
"...when this struggle ends with the enthronement of human rights, racial persecution will be ended."
