MONITORING PLACES OF DETENTION : A PRACTICAL GUIDE 49 3.2.4 Guarantees for national preventive mechanisms The OPCAT sets out specific guarantees and criteria for national preventive mechanisms to ensure that they are free from any interference from the State. These provisions are interdependent and must be taken together in order to ensure the independence of these bodies. As a guiding resource the OPCAT requires States Parties to give due consideration to the “Principles relating to the status and functioning of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights” (The Paris Principles)11. Guarantees and criteria for national preventive mechanisms (Art. 18) In accordance with Article 18 of the OPCAT, national preventive mechanisms must be granted the following guarantees: ■ Functional independence ■ Required capabilities and professional knowledge ■ Appropriate resources Functional independence The independence of national preventive mechanisms is essential to ensuring the effectiveness of these bodies in preventing torture and other forms of ill-treatment. In practice, this means that the national preventive mechanisms must be capable of acting independently of the State authorities. It is also essential that the national preventive mechanisms are perceived as independent of the State authorities. 11 These principles were adopted in October 1991 in Paris at an international workshop convened by the United Nations Centre for Human Rights. The Commission on Human Rights endorsed the recommendations in March 1992.