Chapter 3- Report of the Research and Policy Development Group Therefore, the Commission recommends that the Government, under the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, play a more robust role on the international stage in advocating greater recognition of NHRIs. 4. COMMONWEALTH FORUM ON NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS (CFNHRI) CFNHRI is a platform for national accountability mechanisms to establish networking and share information through experiences and best practices on human rights. In May, the Commission became the Chair of CFNHRI after the Australian Human Rights Commission ended its two-year term. The Commission will serve for two years until the next Biennial Meeting, scheduled to take place in March or May 2015. The Commission looks forward to its tasks, including organising meetings, coordinating and drafting input for statements, administering the website,and facilitating projects on thematic issues. In May, the Commission attended the CFNRHI Biennial Meeting held in Geneva. It had the opportunity to share with other members its activities on the rights of older persons, involving care services for this group and support for caregivers. In conjunction with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) held in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in November, the CFNHRI submitted a Communiqué for the consideration of leaders. The CFNHRI Communiqué,4 drafted by the Commission with input from other members, highlighted the importance of: • • • • • • • • The Commission hopes that the input provided by Malaysia and the Commonwealth will be based on principles of human rights, in particular the human rights based-approach to development. Recognition of NHRIs and the CFNHRI Appointing a Commonwealth Commissioner for Democracy, Rule of Law and Human Rights Business and human rights Human rights and climate change Post-2015 Development Agenda Rights of persons with disabilities, older persons, women and children Issues of sexual orientation and gender identity Issues of human rights and mass violence Although the leaders, through the CHOGM Communiqué,5 made reference to several of these issues, the Commission was discouraged to note that such references did not address the substantive recommendations posed by the CFNHRI. For example, while the leaders acknowledged the importance of establishing and strengthening NHRIs, they did not explicitly recognise NHRIs and the CFNHRI as instrumental stakeholders and partners in promoting and protecting human rights. 4 5 100 Available at: http://cfnhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/CFNHRI-Communique-to-CHOGM-20133.pdf Available at: http://thecommonwealth.org/sites/default/files/news-items/documents/CHOGM%202013%20 Communique_2.pdf