Since the mid-20th Century “human rights” have played a central role in the rhetoric of international relations from the United Nations to other forms of international systems and organisations. The "power” of human rights refers to the claim that individuals "have rights only because they are human" and that these rights belong to all people, hence they are universal. However, the given degree of violence experienced in the 20th century, period, when the concept of human rights has become more dominant in international and national law, questions arise about effectiveness of international human rights protection. This lack of effectiveness gives rise to a certain degree of scepticism about the power of human rights, which may take different interpretations. The notion of human rights based on the principles of humanity and freedom and the assumption that political power must be subjected to “reason” and “law” can be questioned in its very foundations. The present paper analyses the traditional understanding of human rights as included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948 and how human rights have been integrated in the law of worldwide organizations to promote integration and liberalisation of trade. This descriptive account will be evaluated against a critical understanding of natural right which involves a critique of reason and of history understood as a progressive thought.