Sixty-six years ago today, on February 23, 1959 (January 16, 1959), the European Court of Human Rights held its first session in Strasbourg. The European Court of Human Rights was established in Strasbourg in 1959 under the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms signed in 1950 (referred to as the Convention on Human Rights) to uphold some of the rights mentioned in the 1948 United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. The European Court of Human Rights only accepts cases brought by member states of the European Commission. The country concerned must be a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights and have declared that it is fully bound by the Convention, or indicate that it accepts the court's consideration in a particular case. The decisions of the courts of the European Court of Human Rights are final judgments, which must be implemented by member states, and are supervised by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. On February 23, 1959, the European Court of Human Rights held its first session in Strasbourg (the content is unknown).