to its recommendations. For NHRIs that have the power to receive complaints, the results of an inquiry may lead to an increase in human rights complaints in the area of the inquiry. This may place additional pressure on the Government to respond constructively. 2. Public inquiries Some institutions have an express or implied mandate to hold public inquiries: while this can be done in relation to a single serious incident, public inquiries usually examine systemic or general human rights issues, for which they are particularly well suited. The inquiry process enables an institution to examine an issue in depth and from a human rights perspective. A government department’s inquiry into homelessness, for example, might concentrate solely on the availability of housing. A human rights-based inquiry, on the other hand, would be more likely to examine the accessibility, availability and suitability of housing, or its cost, in relation to disaggregated data according to sex, race or ethnic origin. It might also look at data on the distribution of housing that are the result of social or economic forces, including discrimination, that cause homelessness. The fact that a human rights inquiry is broad ensures that the recommendations that stem from it will be broad, too. The decision to launch a public inquiry should be based on the following considerations: ■■ Authority in the enabling legislation of the NHRI; ■■ Planned, clear and transparent objective and outcome; ■■ Cost (anticipated gains must therefore be commensurate with expected efforts and costs); ■■ Planning, especially for media and communications. National human rights institutions should be made aware of existing resources. For example, in 2007, the Asia Pacific Forum (AFP) hosted NHRIs to pool experiences and expertise on running national public inquiries as part of a pilot training programme.57 Public inquires were identified as effective tools for addressing systemic discrimination and violations of human rights. Formal seminars and group exercises provided practical “how to” strategies on: ■■ Setting up a public inquiry, including choosing the inquiry subject, establishing terms of reference, developing an appropriate methodology, identifying stakeholders and undertaking sufficient planning and preparation; ■■ Resourcing a national inquiry, including the involvement of commissioners and staff, financial resources and community resources; ■■ Educating and informing the community, including strategies for working with journalists and the media; and ■■ Planning follow-up activities and advocating the adoption of the inquiry recommendations. Powers associated with a public inquiry Institutions with the specific authority to conduct public inquiries that have full powers to compel testimony and witnesses should have commensurate powers, comparable to those used in investigations, as discussed above. 57 A DVD Going Public: Strategies for an Effective National Inquiry was prepared in 2007. Over 2007-08, APF worked with the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law to present a series of subregional training workshops for APF member institutions on running effective national inquiries in Indonesia and India. See www.asiapacificforum.net. 97