December 10, 2018 marks the 70th anniversary of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights which was a milestone in 1948 for
protecting human rights. Surprisingly, older persons are not yet
expressly identified as a protected group under international human
rights laws. In acknowledgment of the Declaration, the UN
International Day for Older Persons has coined the theme for 2018
to be "Celebrating Older Human Rights Champions". With
the 70th anniversary on the horizon for the Declaration, it feels
important to reflect on older person's rights and the long
standing discussion around the proposed United Nations Convention
on the Rights of Older Persons (the
"Convention").
The UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner
reports that older persons are the fastest-growing segment
of the population and in 2050, there will be approximately two
billion older persons, an over one billion increase from the
current population. The purpose of the Convention is to
