Preventing Torture An Operational Guide for National Human Rights Institutions 2.3. Consideration of NHRIs as NPM When there is an independent NHRI operating in the country, designating the NHRI as the NPM is an option available to the Government. Its independence, existing mandate and functioning, as well as the level of credibility and legitimacy it has established with the authorities and the broader society, should be carefully examined. Existing NHRIs do not necessarily meet all the requirements of the Optional Protocol. Amendments to legislation, organizational restructuring and the provision of additional human, logistical and financial resources are almost always needed if an existing human rights commission or ombudsman’s office is to assume the role of NPM. Furthermore, taking up a new mandate with a focus on prevention, rather than protection or investigation, will require the NHRI to review its working methods, structure and professional composition. In some cases, aspects of the NHRI work may make it inappropriate for designation as the NPM. This might be the case for NHRIs that are predominantly reactive in nature, where the main focus is handling individual complaints, or NHRIs which primarily undertake research or human rights education and promotion. The Nairobi Declaration, adopted during the Ninth International Conference of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in October 2008, states that NHRIs should encourage their Governments “to consider their designation as national preventive mechanisms, only if the necessary powers and resources are made available to them.” There a number of issues that should be examined carefully when considering the designation of an existing NHRI as a NPM, including: • • • • • • • • having a specific mandate to carry out preventive visits having sufficient resources to carry out full programme of regular visits guaranteed access to all places of detention guaranteed access to relevant information the right to conduct interviews with detainees in private independence relevant professional expertise the right to make recommendations to Government and relevant authorities and to receive a considered response • the right to publish reports • necessary privileges and immunities • whether there are other bodies carrying out visits to places of detention. An assessment of these issues can help identify what additional legal measures, restructuring and resources may be required for the NHRI to comply with the requirements of the Optional Protocol. Furthermore, the process leading to the designation of the NHRI as NPM should be open, inclusive and transparent. Watch Go to the Preventing Torture CD-Rom to watch Mark Thomson, SecretaryGeneral of the Association for the Prevention of Torture, discussing the key issues that NHRIs should consider before taking on the role of national preventive mechanism. Click on ‘Feature materials’ and then select ‘Item 16 – National preventive mechanisms: Issues for NHRIs to consider’. 100 | Chapter 10: NHRIs and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture