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World Affairs, Polity & Governance
Mahesh

18/05/24 06:01 AM IST

Why NHRC’s international accreditation is under review

In News
  • NHRC has held an ‘A rating’ since 1999; it was due for re-accreditation by the Geneva-based body last year. On May 1, GANHRI deferred NHRC’s accreditation for the second year in a row.
International Ratings
  • Per the Paris Principles, the NHRIs should have “broad constitutional and/or legislative mandates that cover all human rights; independence; an array of express human rights promotion and protection responsibilities; a pluralist representation; adequate funding; and responsibilities to cooperate, consult and interact with UN bodies, regional organizations, other NHRIs, other statutory bodies responsible for human rights promotion and protection, and human rights NGOs.”
  • The GANHRI (previously known as the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights) unites 120 National Human Rights Institutions globally.
  • The SCA consists of sixteen ‘A’ status NHRIs, four from each region in the Americas, Europe, Africa, and the Asia-Pacific.
  • The body is responsible for reviewing and accrediting NHRIs in compliance with the Paris Principles adopted in 1993.
  • The review process is conducted by the Sub-Committee for Accreditation (SCA) every five years.
  • The SCA, as well as the U.N. Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR), the U.N. Development Programme (UNDP), international and regional organisations, and civil society members, collectively review the NHRIs’ performance.
  • The NHRI has to apply for re-accreditation every five years, or if a change in its function affects its compliance with the Paris Principles.
  • The Paris Principles function as a treatise for National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) globally, ensuring they meet minimum standards to be deemed credible.
  • The six principles provide an anchor for NHRIs, requiring them to maintain autonomy and transparency in decision making, composition, processes and structure.
  • India’s National Human Rights Commission and Atate bodies were formed only in 1993, with the enactment of the Protection of Human Rights Act (PHRA).
  • The rating happens on a scale of A and B; ‘A’ implies a body is fully compliant with the Paris Principles, whereas B signals “partial compliance.”
  • Previously, the SCA has removed accreditation of NHRIs in Afghanistan, Myanmar, Niger and Russia.
  • India retained its A rating in 2006 and 2011. Re-accreditation was delayed once before in 2016, when the SCA flagged the lack of diversity and political appointment of NHRC personnel.
  • India managed to regain its accreditation in November 2017; It was the “first time in accreditation history that a country got back this status solely by proposing and committing to comply with the Paris Principles fully.
  • Should India lose its A rating, NHRC will lose its voting position with GANHRI and forego its position as India’s designated representative at the United Nations Human Rights Council and other subsidiary bodies.
  • Being untethered from a process that ensures international checks and balances will also jeopardise the protection and promotion of human rights in India.
Concerns
  • GANHRI, in its two successive deferrals, cited issues with composition and processes.
  • In 2016, the body flagged obscure, political appointments of officials and a lack of inclusivity in its five-member composition.
  • At the time, three out of five members were from the ruling party; only 20% were women members, with no representation from other marginalised groups.
  • The SCA recommended an amendment to India’s PHA to ensure that at least one of the three members of the NHRC is a woman.
  • However, the SCA found the 2019 Amendments failed to “adequately address its recommendations from the November 2017 accreditation review.”
  • These apprehensions grew in GANHRI’s 2023 re-accreditation process.
  • The NHRC lacked plurality and the selection process was still opaque.
  • Moreover, the body questioned the biased involvement of police officers in investigations; the lack of cooperation with civil society members; and the “failure to exercise its mandate” in protecting the rights of marginalised groups.
  • Per the PHRA, the government appoints police officers of the “rank of Director General of Police or above...for the efficient performance of the Commission.”
  • The SCA, first in 2017 and then in 2023, noted “the real or perceived conflict of interest in engaging police officers for the investigation of human rights violations, particularly those committed by the police.”
  • A total of 478 cases of deaths in police custody and during police encounters remain pending before the NHRC.
  • The SCA recommended amending the PHRA to “remove the capacity for government to second police officers to act as investigative staff, ensuring that the NHRC can independently appoint suitably qualified staff.”
  • At present, former Indian Police Service officers head the Investigation Division of the NHRC.
NHRC Composition
  • A chairperson who is a former Chief Justice of Supreme Court judge;
  • A Commissioner who is a current or a former Judge of the Supreme Court;
  • A Commissioner who is a current or former Chief Justice of a high Court;
  • Three Commissioners with knowledge of or practical experience in human rights (of whom one shall be a woman);
  • The Chairpersons of seven National Commissions.
Source- The Hindu

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