Convention
A Convention is a binding agreement between states or nations; used synonymously with Treaty and Covenant. Conventions are stronger than Declarations because they are legally binding on governments that have signed them. When the UN General Assembly adopts a Convention, it creates international norms and standards. Once a Convention is adopted by the UN General Assembly, Member States can then ratify the Convention, promising to uphold it. Governments that violate the standards set forth in a Convention can then be censured by the UN. In Australia, treaty obligations are only recognised by courts as binding where they have been enacted by domestic legislation.
NameDateDocuments
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea10/12/1982
Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage16/11/1972
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination 1966 (ICERD)4/01/1969
United Nations Convention on the Continental Shelf29/04/1958
Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide12/01/1951

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