OSCE/ODIHR Opinion on the Draft Act on the Independent National Human Rights Institution of Iceland III. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8. At the outset, it should be noted that the Draft Act on the Independent National Human Rights Institution of Iceland is extremely welcome, as it seeks to create a legal framework for the establishment of an independent NHRI for Iceland, in compliance with the Paris Principles. This is a significant first step in addressing recommendations made to Iceland previously by various human rights monitoring bodies.2 9. At the same time, it may be advisable to include in the proposed Draft Act several important aspects pertaining to the NHRI and its functioning, especially those at the core of the institution’s basic guarantees of independence. In particular, the drafters may consider introducing in the Draft Act relevant provisions to protect the members of the Board of Directors and the NHRI’s staff from civil, administrative and criminal liability for words spoken or written, decisions made, or acts performed in good faith in their official capacities (“functional immunity”). The Draft Act should further be supplemented to ensure the institution’s financial independence and autonomy in human resources management. The provisions relating to the NHRI’s mandate and modalities of appointment of the Board of Directors could be enhanced or specified more clearly in the Draft Act, in particular to protect this body’s independence and to ensure its pluralist and gender-balanced composition at all levels. 10. In order to ensure full compliance of the Draft Act with international standards on NHRIs and good practices, the OSCE/ODIHR makes the following key recommendations: A. to supplement Article 3 of the Draft Act by expanding the NHRI’s mandate as follows: - - - 2 expressly state that the NHRI will serve as the National Implementation and Monitoring Mechanism for the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; [par 21] include an explicit mandate to cover acts and omissions of both the public and private sectors, and encourage the ratification or accession to international instruments; [par 30] specify more clearly aspects relating to the promotion of human rights, including co-operation with civil society and non-governmental See in particular Recommendations 115.26 to 115.39 of the Second Cycle Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) for Iceland, A/HRC/WG.6/26/L.4, 15 November 2016, unedited version available at https://www.uprinfo.org/sites/default/files/document/iceland/session_26_-_november_2016/a_hrc_wg.6_26_l.4_iceland_0.pdf; UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Concluding Observations on Iceland, CEDAW/C/ISL/CO/7-8, 10 March 2016, pars 1314, available at http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CEDAW/C/ISL/CO/7-8&Lang=En; UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR), Concluding Observations on Iceland, E/C.12/ISL/CO/4, 11 December 2012, par 7, available at http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=E/C.12/ISL/CO/4&Lang=En; UN Human Rights Committee, Concluding Observations on Iceland, CCPR/C/ISL/CO/5, 31 August 2012, par 5, available at http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CCPR/C/ISL/CO/5&Lang=En; UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Concluding Observations on Iceland, CERD/C/ISL/CO/19-20, 25 March 2010, par 13, available at http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CERD/C/ISL/CO/19-20&Lang=En; UN Committee against Torture, Concluding Observations on Iceland, CAT/C/ISL/CO/3, 8 July 2008, par 6, available at http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CAT%2fC%2fISL%2fCO%2f3&Lang=en. See also the preliminary conclusions of the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights following a visit to Iceland from 8 to 10 June 2016, available at http://www.coe.int/en/web/commissioner/-/iceland-ratify-the-disabilities-convention-and-strengthen-the-humanrights-protection-system?inheritRedirect=true&redirect=%2Fen%2Fweb%2Fcommissioner%2Fthematic-work%2Fpersons-withdisabilities. 4