Today is Human Rights Day, an occasion commemorating the United Nations' passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The standards established that day built upon universal freedoms proclaimed by the allied forces during the second world war. In the aftermath of that horrific war, they were intended to deter systematic human rights violations, and to raise awareness and action when they do occur.

For these reasons, it's important to celebrate the tremendous progress in global human rights over the past 65 years, including the integration of language from the declaration into many constitutions all over the world. However, we must also remember that the UN's vision of these values being "universal," is far from complete, and the recent admission of China into the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) further highlights this reality.

For decades, China has faced persistent criticism for a range of human right violations. These include the suppression of political dissent its record annual number of state executions, among many others. Shortly after its admission into the UNHRC, China announced several major policy shifts, some of which concerned human rights. In a move that was praised by human rights advocates, China vowed to close labor re-education camps, ease restrictions of its "one-child" policy, and curtail use of capital punishment. While these signs may seem encouraging, China also re-affirmed the supreme control of the one-party state and its continued intolerance for dissent and freedom of expression, raising concerns about the long-term stability of its human rights progress.

My father, Wang Bingzhang, is among those who would find difficulty feeling optimistic about these new changes. He is serving a life sentence in prison in China for his pro-democracy advocacy work. As a young man, he founded China's overseas democracy movement. A medical doctor educated in the West, he instead devoted his life to what he believed were basic freedoms long overdue to the Chinese people. For 20 years, he lived and worked out of New York. Inspired by American democracy of the time, and dedicated to his dream of a democratic China, he started a dissident magazine, founded several opposition organizations and travelled the world giving speeches to inspire others to share his ideals.

Then in 2002, while traveling in Vietnam, my father was abducted, forced into a boat to China and arrested by the Chinese police. After being held incommunicado for 6 months, he was subjected to a secret, sham trial, and found guilty of his alleged crimes. For over a decade, he has been serving his sentence in solitary confinement. In recent years, his despair and isolation have sent both his physical and mental health into devastating decline.

In a country without meaningful rule of law, my family has no means to legally appeal my father's conviction, despite having secured exonerating evidence for the graver charges against him. The lawyers we've retained on his behalf are routinely intimidated by authorities, obstructed from visiting him and threatened to be disbarred. I, too, have paid a penalty for speaking on his behalf. For the past five years, I have been unable to visit him, as the Chinese government has refused to grant me an entry visa.

For his family who are citizens of the US and Canada, we feel a conflicted sense of gratitude for the freedoms we enjoy, and our inability to help him. While my aunts and uncle engage in sit-ins and hunger strikes, my siblings and I continue our own advocacy, each of us seeking appropriate channels of intervention for my father's case.

Recently, high-level US and European officials met with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping and other officials to discuss a range of issues – from China's territorial dispute with Japan, to new trade agreements, to, yes, human rights. But China's increased global standing, its entry into the human rights council, and its new willingness to modify troubling policies it long defended are all signs that now is the time to make human rights the focal point of our discussions with China.

The significance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights cannot be overstated. Its principles continue to inspire, and to provide a compass for human rights advocates around the world. My father dedicated his life to these values, and as a consequence, it is uncertain that he will ever see the world beyond his prison cell again.

I would ask that along with celebrations, people all around the world mark this day by rallying behind those who have fought to truly make human rights "universal" and fighting for their release. We must remind our leaders that in international diplomacy, there is no higher ideal or sturdier foundation to build agreements around than shared beliefs in human rights. If we lose sight of this, the sacrifices of so many, like my father, will be in vain.