This publication introduces the reader to national human rights institutions (NHRIs). Its focus is on NHRIs as both cornerstones of national human rights protection and promotion, and links between States and the international human rights system. Respect for human rights requires the concerted effort of every Government, individual, group and organ in society. With this in mind, the publication is intended for all those who seek a basic understanding of NHRIs, the work they do, how they interact with States, civil society and the international community, and how to support their work.

National Human Rights Institutions: Rules, Requirements, and Practice is an authoritative guide to National Human Rights Institutions (NHRI) in their important role as promoters and protectors of human rights at the national level. This book serves as both the first ever 'casebook' on the findings of the SCA, as well as a comprehensive reference for the requirements for compliance of NHRIs with the Paris Principles, and is a vital source of information on the actual practice of NHRIs. Since its earliest assessments of NHRIs in 1998, the Global Alliance of NHRIs' (GANHRI) Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) has developed a substantive body of work that has examined the operation and practice of over 128 institutions in countries and territories from every part of the globe. Analysed and catalogued in their entirety into an accessible format for the first time, and covering all aspects of NHRIs' structure and functioning, as well as providing a thorough overview of how the SCA works in practice, this book is an indispensable resource for scholars and practitioners who wish to understand and learn how NHRIs operate at the national level, as well as what problems they face and ultimately, how they can be strengthened. Benefitting from the unique insight of David Langtry, a member of the SCA for 11 years, this book is an essential source for all those interested in the role of NHRIs, and more broadly, of all state-established institutions intended to function independently.

This book reviews Southeast Asia’s National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) as part of an emerging assessment of a nascent regional human rights architecture that is facing significant challenges in protecting human rights. The book asks, can NHRIs overcome its weaknesses and provide protection, including remedies, to victims of human rights abuses? Assessing NHRIs’ capacity to do so is vital as the future of human rights protection lies at the national level, and other parts of the architecture—the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), and the international mechanism of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR)—though helpful, also have their limitations. The critical question the book addresses is whether NHRIs individually or collaboratively provide protection of fundamental human rights. The body of work offered in this book showcases the progress of the NHRIs in Southeast Asia where they also act as a barometer for the fluid political climate of their respective countries. Specifically, the book examines the NHRIs’ capacity to provide protection, notably through the pursuit of quasi-judicial functions, and concludes that this function has either been eroded due to political developments post-establishment or has not been included in the first place. The book’s findings point to the need for NHRIs to increase their effectiveness in the protection of human rights and invites readers and stakeholders to find ways of addressing this gap.

One of the more promising developments in global efforts to uphold human rights over the past decade has been the growing role of national human rights institutions. A role for national institutions was foreseen by the United Nations Economic and Social Council as early as 1946 and since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 the Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations Secretariat have sought to promote the role of such institutions. This volume offers a wealth of information on the protection functions of existing national human rights institutions in a wide selection of countries, drawn from Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and Oceania. These essays together make clear the genuine striving by national human rights commissions to act for the protection of human rights in the countries they serve, and the variety of protection models that can and are being adopted, both in developed and developing countries.

This book uses comparative law and comparative international law approaches to explore the role of human rights ombuds, classic-based ombuds and other types of ombuds institutions in human rights protection and promotion, their methods of application of international and domestic human rights law and their roles in strengthening good governance. It highlights the increasing importance of national human rights ombuds institutions globally and their roles as national human rights institutions (NHRIs).

Following the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 2020, and the creation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, there is increased interest in and a need to develop national human rights’ bodies for children’s rights. This book provides an in-depth look at one domestic independent children’s rights institution: the Irish Ombudsman for Children’s Office, to highlight the learnings for an international audience and the methodologies that can be used to promote and protect children’s rights at a national level. Co-authored by Ireland’s first Ombudsman for Children and a children’s rights professor, the book will present an original and informed analysis of how a national human rights institution can advocate, most effectively, for the rights of children. By using illustrative case studies, the book will highlight how the powers of a national human rights institution can be put to strategic use to address specific children’s rights deficits in areas of child protection, youth detention and public awareness about children’s rights. Each chapter focusses on a case study, identifies a problem, the approach or intervention by the Ombudsman for Children, the outcome and reflects on lessons learned. It ensures that the cases can be extracted, examined and replicated in other jurisdictions by an international community interested in the promotion, monitoring and protection of children’s rights. It speaks to those interested in Human Rights; Children’s Rights; Socio-legal studies, Social Work; Childhood Studies; Administrative Law, Constitutional Law and International Law, and to practitioners and policy-makers in this field.

All institutions have human rights responsibilities. Some have been set up with this function and others have had human rights principles thrust upon them. This book explores how different institutions, from state entities, national human rights commissions and the judiciary, to the United Nations agencies and international courts, have engaged in human rights protection. There is analysis of their evolution in this role and the methods that they use. Northern Ireland and Bosnia & Herzegovina are illustrative of what can happen to human rights when societies are in conflict. Other chapters consider the development of international criminal law, the trouble with treaties, and the increasing pressure on corporations to demonstrate social responsibility. There is plenty of evidence that human rights protection is as important as ever and this book looks at what is required to achieve this effectively. The British Institute of Human Rights aims to further the protection of human rights through education and research. It is a charity based at King's College London.