12 CDL-AD(2013)019 to increase the frequency of plenary meetings (e.g., the French National Human Rights Consultative Commission meets about six times a year, which would amount to meeting every second month). Generally, regardless of the size of a human rights commission, it is essential that it is supported by a strong body of highly professional support staff. Legislation should permit the assistance of independent, including international, experts where needed. 42. The Chairman and members of the Higher Committee are appointed by the President by decree for three years on a renewable basis (Article 8 of the Law). Members representing public institutions and NGOs are appointed based on the suggestion of the bodies which they are representing. The Law does not set out a specific procedure for appointing the Chairman and other members of the Higher Committee. 43. The tenure of three years for members of the Committee would appear to be too short. To better ensure the independence and impartiality of the Higher Committee and its members, it would be advisable to extend the term to 5 or 6 years, without the possibility of renewal; this way, members would not be affected by considerations of future reappointment. For the sake of continuity, the first term may be extended for some of the Committee’s members if its entire composition is renewed. 44. The Paris Principles specify that the composition of the Higher Committee and the appointment of its members shall be established in accordance with a procedure affording all necessary guarantees to ensure “the pluralistic representation of social forces (of the civilian society) involved in the promotion and protection of human rights”. The composition of the Higher Committee would thus need to reflect diverse segments of Tunisian society, professions, and backgrounds, as well as, as far as possible, an equal representation of women and men14, and a balance of different regions of the country. The same should apply to its support staff.15 Guarantees for ensuring such pluralism should be included in the Law. At the same time, an appropriate level of lawyers and other highly qualified professionals would help ensure an effective performance and appropriate level of interventions. 45. Pluralism can likewise be enhanced via the appointment process (e.g. diverse societal groups suggest or recommend candidates), and procedures enabling effective cooperation with diverse societal groups.16 The selection and appointment process should be fully transparent, and should be based on broad consultation throughout. Vacancies for members should be advertised broadly, and the number of potential candidates from a wide range of societal groups should be maximized. Finally, members should be selected based on their individual capacity, rather than on behalf of a specific organization.17 46. At the moment, the President of the Republic exercises considerable influence on who is appointed as member of the Committee; it would appear that he/she currently has the power to single-handedly select and appoint the 15 individual members to the Higher Committee, as well as its Chairman. At the same time, the procedure whereby human rights experts, and individuals considered competent for the position of Chairman are brought to the President’s attention is not outlined in the Law. Furthermore, while Article 8 states that representatives of national human rights NGOs are appointed at the suggestion of these NGOs, it is not clear whether these shall always be the same 12 NGOs, or whether a larger number of NGOs may propose representatives, from which the President or another body shall then select 12 members to the Committee. 47. It would be preferable if the selection procedure were not only more transparent, but would also do more to guarantee pluralism in membership, so as to promote the independence of, and public confidence in the Higher Committee.18 Guarantees for this 14 See Article 5 par 2 of the Irish Human Rights Commission Act, requiring that no less than four members of the Commission shall be men, and no less than four shall be women. 15 See the General Observations of the ICC Sub-Committee on Accreditation, par 2.1. 16 Ibid. 17 See the General Observations of the ICC Sub-Committee on Accreditation, par 2.2. See also the Reports and Recommendations from the Session of the ICC Sub-Committee on Accreditation of 19-23 November 2012, Chapter 2, Specific Recommendations, pp. 13, 18, 26, and 29. 18 See also the Reports and Recommendations from the Session of the ICC Sub-Committee on Accreditation of 19-23 November 2012, Chapter 2, Specific Recommendations, pp. 26 and 29.