photo cc: Fransesco Esposito and NASA (modified by P. Duhamel).

Human rights form the indispensable foundations that make it possible for human beings to lead meaningful, satisfying lives. They define the basic entitlements and freedoms that are our birthright. Centuries in the making, the new, growing culture of respect for human rights has been driving the modern push for democracy, development, and accountable governance.

Everyone is entitled to live in dignity, with their basic needs being met. We were all born with a heart longing to be free and equal.

Human rights are universal — they belong to individuals and also to communities. Human rights are interrelated and indivisible — none can be taken away without hurting the others.

And such is the all-important mission endowed upon National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs): to see that all human rights be promoted and protected, and not violated by the home country. There are some 110 relatively independent, government-sponsored NHRIs in the world, all of which can assess, monitor, and act on fundamental human rights, based on United Nations definitions and instruments.

NHRIs include human rights commissions and ombuds, the former headed by a plurality of commissioners, the latter, by a single person. As such, NHRIs can engage their own governments in ways, and with a level of influence, that most civil society organizations cannot.

A National Human Rights Institution can monitor and address

• violations of basic freedoms (such as freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, freedom of association);
• violations of civil and political rights (such as liberty and security of the person, right to fair and speedy trial)
• violations of economic, social and cultural rights (including housing rights, employment, labour);
• such grave violations as torture, disappearances, or arbitrary executions;
• abuses of other rights as defined by the national constitution, or administrative irregularities in State-sponsored social programmes;
• etc.

Most National Human Rights Institutions address many levels of violations related to discrimination. Such violations can be based on race, gender (including marital status, pregnancy, disability and family status), religion, or disability. Many patterns of discrimination target vulnerable groups such as children, women, ethnic / linguistic minorities, indigenous peoples, or refugees.

While not all NHRIs are entrusted with the quasi-jurisdictional competence needed to register complaints and petitions from individuals (for instance, the Human Rights Institutions of France, Germany, Greece cannot take on individual cases), all can monitor violations, make recommendations, and advocate change in national policy.

To fulfill their mandates, most NHRIs will:

1. inquire into and assess situations and potential violations;
2. report on human rights violations;
3. choose tactics to combat discrimination and extend human rights protection;
4. seek remedies, including changes in legislation and institutional practices, amendments to public policy, public education, and awareness programmes;
5. collaborate with non-governmental organisations and institutions working in the field of human rights;
6. monitor the implementation of solutions, and follow-up.

How effective can National Human Rights Institutions really be? In a workshop at the 2004 New Tactics World Symposium, Ashraf Mahomed, of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) gave one example. The case involved juveniles held in custody together with adults awaiting trial, where they were severely abused and sodomised.

The SAHRC took a sworn statement from the district surgeon who saw the injuries, held meetings with senior police officers, and wrote letters to the minister. Because of the intransigence and lack of co-operation of officials at the police station, said Ashraf Mahomed, the SAHRC had to refer key aspects of the case "to statutory bodies that could more effectively and expeditiously deal with those", while pursuing a second track to show that the human rights agency really was not seeking to get anyone fired or dismissed.

"Once we were able to do this", said Ashraf Mahomed, "the authorities agreed to abandon administrative procedures relating to juveniles in custody and they also undertook not to hold juveniles in police cells at all. Once we obtained these agreement and undertakings in writing, we then approached the Minister requesting that this be implemented in all police stations across the country." The systematic change in the policies and practices affecting juveniles in police custody had a huge impact across the country, and changed perceptions in official circles.

It would appear that independence from the State, as outlined in the Paris Principles, is a key condition for the effectiveness of NHRIs. Editorials in Kenya have praised the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) and “the rare courage of government organs challenging the government that appoints them”.

Maina Kiai, Chairman of the KNCHR, has explained (at the 2004 New Tactics Symposium also) that one of the tactics adopted to assert the body's independence was to address issues not commonly regarded as human rights, such as government corruption. "Because these are sensitive matters that affect some of the most powerful people in government", says Maina Kiai, "the fact that the National Commission is not afraid to tackle and highlight the issues has provided critical support in favour of our independence".

Philippe Duhamel, interTactica.org

Join us this week (April 23-28, 2008) as we discuss Using National Human Rights Institution mechanisms for addressing discrimination issues with a slew of experts from national institutions in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Ghana, Kenya, Mexico, the Netherlands, and South Africa.

If you are a citizen involved in a civil society organization: How is civil society engaging National Human Rights Institutions in your country? Have you ever considered enlisting your National Human Rights Institution as an ally? Could you make your organization/constituency more powerful by engaging the credibility of your own NHRI (and reinforcing it, if possible)? How do you wish you could engage your own NHRI? Come tell us about it.

(By the way, you can find the National Human Rights Institution of your country, including its standing with the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, in this list. Some 60 national institutions receive an "A" rating, while over two dozens face some reservations or are considered not compliant with the Paris principles.)

If you are somebody with expertise working within a National Human Rights Institution: How is the National Human Rights Institution engaging civil society in your country? As government-mandated and govermnent-sponsored institutions, yet independent, what do you see are the strengths and weaknesses of the NHRI's relationship with the State? How is your NHRI engaging civil society organizations?

How do you wish your NHRI would engage civil society?