Part III The practice: What NHRIs can do to contribute to the process of change Section I Getting ready to engage Promotion: Promotion of the implementation of the Convention covers a broad range of activities, including not only awareness-raising activities, as highlighted in article 8 of the Convention, but also a more strategic engagement to advance implementation. This could include scrutiny for compliance of existing national legislation, regulations and practices, draft bills and other proposals, in order to ensure consistency with the requirements of the Convention; and the provision of technical advice to public authorities or other agencies in construing and applying the Convention, including on the basis of observations and recommendations and general comments issued by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.241 Protection: Under the Convention, ‘protection’ can include a broad range of different activities, including the investigation and examination of individual and group complaints, taking cases to court, conducting inquiries and issuing reports.242 Monitoring: … monitoring the implementation of the Convention can be approached in a number of ways, including through the assessment of progress, stagnation or retrogression in the enjoyment of rights over a certain period of time. The development of indicators and benchmarks is a particularly effective way to monitor implementation, particularly with regard to the progressive realization of economic, social and cultural rights, as set out in the Convention. Another approach with which many human rights institutions are familiar is that of monitoring human rights violations, a common methodology of which to collect or maintain records of the complaints filed by alleged victims before relevant judicial or quasi-judicial complaints mechanisms. Considering the specific barriers persons with disabilities have traditionally faced in accessing justice, such data can be integrated with information on violations provided by other sources, such as civil society organizations and organizations of persons with disabilities participating in the framework.243 In practice, the functions of ‘promoting, protecting and monitoring’ implementation are often interlinked. For example, strategic litigation might be used to draw attention to and promote awareness regarding systemic violations, in addition to allowing an individual claim to be pursued. Indeed, some inquiries and investigations conducted by NHRIs may amount to monitoring, whereas others might be regarded as protecting the rights of persons with disabilities. The most effective strategy for NHRIs is to employ their powers and functions in combination to maximise their impact. Very often the question of which task to perform or which power to use will depend on the NHRI’s theory of change. That change could be short-term, intermediate or long-term. It will also depend on the obstacles to change, such as a lack of understanding, political apathy, inefficient or insensitive service arrangements, or the need to make laws and practical provisions that support implementation. NHRIs will have to face and address these obstacles in partnership with others, especially civil society. NHRIs must also have an eye to long-term change which often involves a re-framing of disability (see Part I). Although this work does not yield immediate results, it is necessary to pursue as it helps create space for other change to occur. 7.2. THE ROLE OF NHRIs AS PART OF A FRAMEWORK TO PROMOTE, PROTECT AND MONITOR IMPLEMENTATION NHRIs ought, ideally, to be designated to perform the ‘independent’ role in the framework described in article 33(2) of the Convention. This does not mean that the framework cannot have other ‘less independent’ elements. As the Australian Human Rights Commission has advised, the oblique reference to the Paris Principles in article 33(2): 241 Ibid. 242 Ibid. 243 Ibid. Chapter 7: The institutional architecture for change and the place of NHRIs | 95