International Human Rights and the International Human Rights System A Manual for National Human Rights Institutions A wide view of the Human Rights Council at its 19th regular session. During the day’s meetings Members considered the Universal Periodic Review reports of Ireland, Swaziland, Syria and Thailand, among others, as part of the Council’s process to periodically review the human rights records of all 193 UN Member States. UN Photo by Jean-Marc Ferré. 7. ROLES OF NHRIs IN THE UPR The UPR highlights each State’s human rights performance in a major international forum, before other States, UN agencies, human rights NGOs, other NHRIs and the international community generally. It therefore provides an important opportunity for every NHRI to promote and protect human rights in its own country and internationally. An “A status” NHRI can contribute to this process at every stage, in many ways, including through: • participating in the State consultation prior to the preparation of the State report • encouraging the State to report frankly and comprehensively, highlighting both significant achievements and important challenges and identifying priorities for action • recommending that the State make voluntary commitments in its report and in its statement to the UPR Working Group • providing information for the UPR to the HRC and proposing recommendations • promoting its views and recommendations to other States that can raise them during the UPR Working Group interactive dialogue • attending the interactive dialogue to provide its expertise informally to the Working Group and to monitor the State’s statements and commitments • organising parallel events at the Working Group session to provide information, expert analysis and recommendations • participating in the HRC plenary discussion of the Working Group report, addressing the HRC under the special provisions for the “A status” NHRI of the State under review • promoting the UPR report and its recommendations within its own country, to inform and encourage implementation of the recommendations • encouraging acceptance by the State of recommendations not accepted during the UPR process itself Chapter 6: Universal Periodic Review | 45