PARTICIPANTS from national institutions and organisations represented at the Workshop agreed on the following action strategies they committed themselves to implement as appropriate:

1. Structures and mechanisms of cooperation

1.1 Recognise the importance of. and implement, better consultation processes between national human rights institutions and NGOs. which should be regular, transparent, inclusive and substantive: encourage. NGOs to decide on what processes and mechanisms best suit their circumstances and relations with the national human rights institution in their country: encourage national institutions to establish focal points to facilitate relations with NGOs:

1.2 Hold joint training pro-’ grams;

1.3 Consider temporary personnel attachments between national institutions and NGOs;

1.4 Cooperate where possible when making recommendations to governments or other national bodies;

1.5 Cooperate and seek advice from OHCHR in encouraging the development of national human rights action plans;

1.6 Hold workshops on specific issues of mutual interest, with a particular focus on ensuring a balanced approach to participation and organisation:

1.7 Establish mechanisms for discussion between national institutions and NGOs with a view to maximising possibilities of using information technology to keep each other informed of their activities and issues arising from monitoring of human rights questions as well as relevant recommendations;

2. Education

2.1 Recognise that effective human rights education must be based on an analysis of the human rights situation in the Garticular country and on the niversal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments:

2.2 Adopt as the goal of human rights education the creation of an environment which enables recognition and respect for the human rights of all people and maximises individuals' and communities' awareness of their own human rights and their capacity to utilise available mechanisms for the enforcement of these rights:

2.3 Undertake an evaluation of existing programs at the national and regional level;

2.4 Use available tools for planning, e g the guidelines for national action plans in the field of human rights prepared within the framework of tne International Decade for Human

Rights Education;

2.5 Consult on human rights education in order to facilitate planning and implementation, to encourage governments to fulfil their obligations to provide human rights education, to identify the organisations best placed to undertake particular programms. to ^void duplication. to coordinate fund raising and to monitor the effectiveness of programs. A potentially fruitful area of cooperation would be for national institutions and NGOs to exchange materials and resources to enable them to carry out human rights education activities;

2.6 Consult in the development of curriculum designed for the mainstream education system, whether at the primary, secondary or tertiary levels:

’ 2.7 Develop cooperative programs and facilitate joint participation in programs of training for teachers and public officials. including the military, the police and corrective services personnel;

2.8 Develop cooperative programs and facilitate joint participation in programs of training for human rights educators, including teachers and parents:

2.9 Cooperate with relevant Judicial authorities in programs of training for members of the judiciary;

2.10 Develop memoranda of agreement with government agencies to, facilitate the provision of training to government officials:

2.11 Develop panels of speakers from both NGOs and national institutions who would be available for human rights education presentations;

2.12 Cooperate in the dissemination of information on international and domestic human rights instruments, including the .Paris Principles and the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders;

2.13 Where appropriate, promote human rights education through public or media campaigns, to be undertaken individually as well as jointly;

2.14 Develop relations with the media, particularly the state-owned media in some countries, to promote informed coverage of human rights issues;

2.15 Facilitate joint partici-Siation in public meetings, con-erences and media events:

2.16 Establish mutual links on internet websites;

2.17 Develop Joint or separate approaches to technical assistance and potential funding agencies, including OHCHR and UNDP, with proposals for

human rights education programmes;

2.18 Cooperate in using reports of national human rights institutions, NGOs, the United Nations human rights mechanisms and treaty monitoring bodies as tools for increasing public awareness and pursuing specific issues:

3. Complaints and Investigations

3.1 Agreed that it was vital that national institutions should have their own independent investigations capacity;

3.2 Arrange information sessions at which NGOs and national institutions would inform each other better about their complaints and investigations systems, to discuss trends, to improve mechanisms. to take into account international materials and to avoid, duplication:

3.3 Facilitate public awareness of national institution complaints and investigations systems. This could include the preparation of relevant materials. such as a manual, as well as non-written materials targeted at people who are illiterate. Special, attention should be given to vulnerable groups;

3.4 Consider Joint action aimed at promoting changes to national institutions investigatory mandates where those mandates are too narrow or otherwise unsatisfactory in the investigations area;

3.5 Facilitate transmission of information from NGOs to national institutions and vice versa on specific cases, where appropriate;

3.6 Facilitate cooperation at the local level between NGOs and national institutions when inquiring into specific cases;

3.7 Develop transparent and inclusive mechanisms whereby NGOs could be involved in the investigation process:

3.8 Explore means of using information technology to facilitate exchanges of" information on specific cases:

3.9 Arrange joint training courses aimed at strengthening the effectiveness of complaints and investigations and reporting systems:

4. Public Inquiries

4.1 Hold joint workshops aimed at promoting awareness of the concept of public in-Suiries. their objectives and leir mechanisms and possible subjects: consult with national institutions and NGOs to ensure that best practice is followed:

4.2 Where consideration is being given to the establishment of a public inquiry, con-

sult in the development of its terms of reference and on a strategic plan for the inquiry;

4.3 Cooperate closely where a national institution is carrying out a public inquiry, particularly in the exchange of information. and on-site activities;

4.4 Lobby for legislation to ensure that it is incumbent on legislatures to discuss national human rights institution re-Sorts within a specific time ame and that national human rights institutions are empowered in cases of undue delay to make their reports public;

4.5 Cooperate in facilitating media coverage of public inquiries: cooperate in conveying public inquiry reports to relevant UN mechanisms:

4.6 Cooperate in promoting the implementations of any public inquiry's recommendations;

4.7 Organisations represented also recommended that the Asia Pacific Forum should organise a regional workshop on public inquiries as part of the Forum's programme of annual thematic workshops;

5. Relations with Legislatures

5.1 Cooperate in promoting constructive relations and Joint meetings with legislatures and legislators aimed at promoting and protecting human rights;

5.2 Consider holding workshops aimed at strengthening the capacity of national institutions and NGO personnel to lobby legislatures effectively including through campaigns aimed at promoting specific action by legislatures on human rights issues;

5.3 Consider jointly participating in workshops aimed at better informing legislators about human rights and the role and functions of national institutions and NGOs:

5.4 Encourage legislatures to establish human rights committees; where appropriate, approach the Inter-Parliamentary Union to encourage the national parliament to give greater emphasis to human rights;

5.5 Work Jointly in order to bring the protection and pro-■ motion of human rights into political party platforms;

6. Legislation

6.1 Systematically review existing legislation and other instruments having the force of law to ensure consistency with human rights law. including relevant international humanitarian law standards, in a holistic way, to ensure compli-

ance with the principle of indivisibility of human rights with a view to recommending appropriate changes to ensure consistency with those standards;

6.2 Develop mechanisms for public consultation and discussion on proposed legislation and other instruments having the force of law to ensure consistency with human rights and related standards with a view to recommending appropriate changes to ensure consistency with those standards;

6.3 Cooperate in encouraging governments to develop mechanisms whereby government departments seek NGO and national human rights institution inputs into new legislation, review of legislation and human rights treaty negotiations:

6.4 Establish mechanisms whereby national institutions seek NGO input into national institution recommendations to government about legislation;

6.5 Cooperate in promoting the development of domestic legislation in accordance with international human rights norms;

6.6 Coordinate effort for the ratification and implementation of international human rights instruments and the removal of declarations, derogations and reservations to such instruments;

6.7 Encourage where appropriate the establishment of forums with a broadly based membership that could specialise in the review of the human rights aspec*’ of legislation;

7. Establishment of new national institutions

7.1 Recommended that the Asia Pacific Forum, in consultation with NGOs, should adopt by its annual meeting in 2000, minimum standards for mechanisms and processes for the establishment of new national human rights institutions in the region in conformity with the Paris principles. These ' guidelines should pay particular regard to the need for new institutions to have indepeif-dence built into their manaate^L for processes and mechanisms to be developed in partnership with NGOs. for public hearings and for public review of proposed national human rights institution legislation ana for transparency in the appointment of commission members. Such institutions should have advisory, educational and investigatory functions;

7.2 Agreed that, in cooperation with the Office of the High

Commissioner for Human Rights, national institutions and NGOs would provide information and advice to governments and NGOs of other countries. where requested, on models for the establishment of national institutions in conformity with the Paris principles:

8. Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions

8.1 Requested the Forum Secretariat, in cooperation with NGOs. to disseminate this Programme of Action widely to governments, national institutions. non-governmental organisations. the United Nations and other international and regional organisations:

8.2 Requested the Forum Secretariat to collaborate with national institutions and NGOs of the region in the mobilisation of funds through programmes of technical cooperation aimed at giving effect to activities proposed in this Programme of Action;

8.3 Agreed that national institutions and NGOs would provide brief annual reports to the Forum on measures taken to give effect to this Programme of Action.

8.4 Took note of the arrangements for NGO participation at the third annual meeting of the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions. held in Jakarta in September 1998. and requested that the Forum attempts to ensure that NGO participation continues to improve in future Forum meetings;

9. International activity

9.1 Cooperate in monitoring and encouraging government compliance with international obligations and Implementation of recommendations, views or opinions given by international human rights monitoring bodies; cooperate in reporting to treaty monitoring bodies and in disseminating treaty body reports, recommendations, views and opinions:

9.2 Consult and cooperate in support of the participation of national human rights institutions and NGOs in international and regional human rights meetings under the auspices of the United Nations: cooperate for the strengthening of United Nations mechanisms, including, where appropriate, through coordinated approaches, to government ar>d parliaments.

9.3 Conduct jointly information sessions on the United Nations protection mechanisms; work cooperatively to ensure that alleged violations of human rights are presented to appropriate United Nations or other inter-governmental mechanisms.

monjurulkabir @usa.net