Section II: The role of the NIHR in the field of human rights protection 1. T  he provisions of Law No. (26) for the year 2014, which established the National Institution for Human Rights, as amended by Decree-Law No. (20) for the year 2016, defines the role of the NIHR in the field of protection of human rights through the receipt of complaints on human rights, and field visits to monitor the human rights situation in places of detention. 2. W  here Article No. (12) of the same law in paragraph (E) thereof states that the National Institution’s jurisdiction is to “monitor cases of human rights violations, and conduct the necessary investigations, and draw the attention of the competent to authorities to them and submit proposals relating to initiatives aimed at putting an end for these cases, and when necessary express an opinion on the position of these authorities and their reactions”, also in paragraph (F), it stipulated its authority to “receive complaints related to human rights and study, research them and refer what the institution believes should be referred to the competent authorities with effective follow up, or enlighten stakeholders with the procedures to be followed and help them to implement them, or assist in their settlement with the concerned authorities”. 3. W  ith respect to the field visits as a means of monitoring granted to the NIHR, paragraph (G) of Article No. (12) stipulates its mandate as to “carry out announced and unannounced field visits, to monitor the human rights situation in correctional institutions and places of detention and workers’ gatherings and health and educational facilities, or anywhere else where violations of human rights are suspected”. These terms of reference, in their entirety, relate to the role played by the national organization in the field of human rights protection. 4. T  his text comes as a confirmation of the need to expand the terms of reference in the field of protection of human rights in a manner consistent with international decisions in this regard. The required protection should not be limited to only receiving complaints, but should extend to tracking and monitoring the status of human rights and document it by various ways and methods, because the monitoring process is necessary to ensure the degree and the extent of state’s respect of its legal or international obligations relevant to human rights. 5. Pursuant to the terms of reference contained in the provisions of the law, the NIHR played an active role in the protection of human rights, where it interacted with some of the events that have cast a shadow on Human Rights, and issued several statements on separate occasions expressing its deep regret for the death of a man and the injuring of police officers, expressing condolences and sympathy for those who died and the injured, and expressing disapproval at the same time of such violence against the police. It invited members of the community to be vigilant and not to be dragged behind the calls for violence and adhere to the tools of peaceful work and defend the legitimate demands by legal means at their disposal, which are guaranteed by law. It also called for abiding by national unity and promoting peaceful coexistence between groups and the different components of Bahraini society. In addition, it called on the competent authorities to apply the law, including limiting the recourse to violence and encouraging peaceful action in the exercise of freedom of opinion and the right to expression, taking into account the legal rights of the accused, guaranteed by Bahrain’s Constitution and relevant national and international legislations. 46