1966 (in force 1976) · Charters, declarations and treaties

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

International

A treaty that turns the civil and political rights of the Universal Declaration into binding obligations for the states that join it.

Why it matters

It has been ratified by most countries and is a reference for national courts and constitutional drafters.

Built on

1948

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

United Nations

made the Declaration's civil and political rights legally binding

Went on to shape

1990

New Zealand Bill of Rights Act

New Zealand

was passed to give effect to the Covenant

Counting texts that borrowed from the texts that borrowed from this one, 2 later texts on this timeline trace back to it.

Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

TheLawToKnow Tools’s timeline lists links of influence only where the borrowing is widely documented. Historians sometimes disagree about how much one text shaped another. It is an educational overview, not legal advice.