3.5 Cooperation with Other NHRIs and Regional Human Rights Networks
The Paris Principles require cooperation with NHRIs of other countries.12 It was in response to this, in part, that the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions (ICC) was established and mandated to encourage coordination and cooperation among national human rights institutions. As noted in several places in this Toolkit, the ICC also serves as liaison with the UN and other international organisations, and assists governments to establish institutions in conformity with the Paris Principles.
OHCHR has regional offices that include, for Africa, Southern Africa (Pretoria), East Africa (Addis Ababa) and West Africa (Dakar); Latin America (Santiago and Panama city), the Middle East and the Gulf countries (Beirut), the Pacific (Suva), Europe (Brussels), Central Asia (Bishkek) and South-East Asia (Bangkok). OHCHR is also responsible for the Regional Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Central Africa (Yaoundé) and the Human Rights and Documentation Centre for South-West Asia and the Arab Region Office (Doha). Initiatives have been ongoing to strengthen and expand regional efforts and to use them as a mechanism for reinforcing NHRIs. It is important to note that OHCHR has been paying particular attention to regional and sub-regional offices and strategies as a key part and tool of its country engagement strategy. Throughout its planning and activities, OHCHR plays a leading role to strengthen cooperation between the United Nations and regional arrangements with a view to closing human rights protection gaps.13
The UN human rights system is supplemented by regional human rights mechanisms. In addition to the existing human rights mechanisms in Europe, Latin America and Africa, in July 2009, it was announced that ASEAN would create a regional human rights body called the ASEAN Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights. Regional economic and development institutions, such as the sub-regional African economic communities (e.g. ECOWAS and SADC), are also becoming involved in human rights. It is therefore important for the UNCTs and NHRIs to be aware of opportunities to contribute meaningfully to organs established under these regional and sub-regional mechanisms. Doing so will enable NHRIs to expand their influence and is also consistent with the Paris Principles, which mention the need to cooperate with such mechanisms.
Further information about regional and sub-regional human rights bodies can be found in Chapter 2 and its annexes.
Regional associations of NHRIs represent strategies to enhance cooperation across institutions generally and on specific issues. There are also regional human rights networks in Europe, the Network of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Americas, the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions and the Network of African National Human Rights Institutions, among the many specialized networks in existence.
- Example: Regional Coordination and the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF)14 Trafficking Focal Point Network
The Trafficking Focal Point Network is a regional network established in 1999.
Network members are members, commissioners or senior staff from NHRIs in the Asia Pacific region, and include Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, and Thailand. Members share information, undertake research and develop cooperative projects. Resource materials are shared and used in training programs and good practices are identified, documented and distributed among the network.
Network members have also been involved in a number of successful interventions in cases of trafficking. The work of the network has helped improve the capacity of APF members to support regional governments in their efforts to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking. A workshop was held in Sydney in 2005, entitled the APF Regional Workshop on Trafficking and National Human Rights Institutions: Cooperating to End Impunity for Traffickers and Secure Justice for Victims.
Further information is available at
http://www.asiapacificforum.net/services/networks/trafficking.
Source: The text in this section was adapted from Equitas, National Human Rights Institutions at Work Equality for Women: A Handbook on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 2008.
12 Paris Principles, Competence and responsibilities, 3(e).
14 The Asia Pacific Forum is a regional network of NHRIs established in 1996 to support existing regional NHRIs, to work with governments and NGOs to establish new NHRIs in accordance with the Paris Principles, and to promote staff exchanges, information and hold regular meetings to discuss human rights issues of common or regional concern.