referred to as the ‘Paris Principles.’ On this basis it admitted the national human rights institutions of Malaysia, Republic of Korea and Thailand as full members of the Forum, thereby increasing its membership to 12 institutions. 6. The Forum considered a discussion paper examining the category of ‘Associate Membership.’ The Forum agreed on two guiding criteria in considering applications for associate membership: namely the requirement to possess a broad mandate; and the desirability of admitting only one institution per member state of the United Nations. 7. The Forum considered it was important to strengthen strategic partnerships with human rights institutions. Invitations would be issued to relevant institutions / organisations to participate as observers depending on the focus of the meetings. 8. The Forum unanimously elected the National Human Rights Commission of India (as the current host institution of the annual meeting) to the position of Chairperson of the Forum. The National Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (as the host institution for the last annual meeting) and the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (as the host institution for the next annual meeting) were also elected unanimously to the two positions of Deputy Chairpersons. 9. The Forum elected the national human rights institutions from Australia, Fiji, Nepal and the Philippines to be the four regional representatives to the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions. The Fiji Human Rights Commission will also serve on the International Coordinating Committee accreditation sub-committee. 10. The Forum welcomed the inaugural meeting of Senior Executive Officers of Forum member institutions. The Forum noted the outcomes of the meeting including the establishment of a working group to examine and implement measures to assist the effective and efficient functioning of national human rights institutions. The Forum also requested that the Secretariat assist the Forum Councillors in the development of new governance and management policies for the Forum. 11. The Special Advisor to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights emphasised the continuing commitment of the United Nations to promote the establishment and strengthening of national institutions. The Deputy Chairperson of the Forum provided a report on the Forum’s activities over the last year and the Forum expressed their appreciation for the work of the Secretariat. The representative of non-governmental organisations of the region stressed the importance of national institutions undertaking practical collaborative activities with non-governmental organisations at both the national and regional level for the protection and promotion of human rights. 12. Forum Councillors reported on their implementation of the recommendations of the Advisory Council of Jurists’ reports on the death penalty and child pornography on 25