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Freedom is a timeless value. The United Nations Charter calls for encouraging respect for fundamental freedoms. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights mentions freedom more than twenty times. All countries have committed to protecting individual freedoms on paper - but in practice, too many break their pledge.
Ban Ki-Moon
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Freedom is a fundamental value that is often promised but not always upheld in practice.

This quote emphasizes the importance of freedom as a core value recognized globally, particularly by institutions such as the United Nations. Despite the formal commitments outlined in charters and declarations to protect individual freedoms, the reality often falls short, highlighting a disparity between ideals and actions in various nations regarding human rights and liberties.

Themes

FreedomHuman RightsRespectValueCommitment

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in a speech about the importance of human rights and freedoms in society.

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