What are treaties and declarations?

The two broad types of international human rights standards are declarations and treaties.

Declarations are non-legally binding set of principles that governments agree to work towards. Declarations, while being non-legally binding, still make up a part of international customary law.
The Declaration of most importance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Treaties are legally binding agreements between governments. Each United Nations treaty has a treaty body to monitor its implementation. The main functions of treaty bodies are to:

       •    examine State reports;
       •    provide concluding observations;
       •    examine individual Communications (views or decisions); and
       •    issue general comments.

The main United Nations declarations on indigenous peoples is the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Core United Nations Human Rights Treaties

The nine core United Nations human rights treaties include: 

• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
  International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)
  Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD)
  Convention on the Rights of the Child (CROC)
  Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)
  Convention against Torture (CAT)
  Convention on Migrant Workers
  Convention on Disabilities (CRPD)