Introduction for users National human rights institutions (NHRIs) are official, independent legal institutions established by the State and exercising the powers of the State to promote and protect human rights. They are established by national constitutions or acts of legislatures, guaranteeing their independence from political direction or interference, both governmental and non-governmental. They have broad mandates for the promotion and protection of human rights. They comply with the international minimum standards for NHRIs, the Principles relating to the Status of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (the Paris Principles).1 NHRIs are innovative institutions, occupying space within the State structure among the three primary institutions of government, parliament and judiciary. They lie between the State and civil society; they are State institutions but independent of government. Because they are a new type of State institution, their natures, roles and responsibilities are still being explored and developed. This manual draws from and contributes to that work of exploration and development. The first NHRIs were established in the late 1970s and 1980s. In 1991, there were still fewer than 20 NHRIs. At their first international meeting in Paris that year, they adopted the Paris Principles, which were subsequently endorsed by the United Nations (UN) Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).2 The Paris Principles provide a benchmark, a set of minimum requirements, for NHRIs. The growth in the numbers and effectiveness of NHRIs over the past 20 years can be traced directly to the strong endorsement they received from the Second World Conference on Human Rights in 1993: The World Conference on Human Rights reaffirms the important and constructive role played by national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights, in particular in their advisory capacity to the competent authorities, their role in remedying human rights violations, in the dissemination of human rights information, and education in human rights. The World Conference on Human Rights encourages the establishment and strengthening of national institutions, having regard to the ‘Principles relating to the status of national institutions’ and recognizing that it is the right of each State to choose the framework which is best suited to its particular needs at the national level.3 Since 1993, the establishment and strengthening of NHRIs in compliance with the Paris Principles have been central concerns of the UN system and of States in encouraging effective national implementation of international human rights standards. The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) regularly passes resolutions,4 as does the UNGA.5 Treaty monitoring bodies have added their voices, often including recommendations in their Concluding Observations for establishing or strengthening NHRIs.6 The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (HCHR) has responded to the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (VDPA) and to the resolutions of UN bodies by supporting the establishment and strengthening of NHRIs. 1 Commission on Human Rights resolution 1992/54 and General Assembly resolution 48/134. 2 The Paris Principles were drafted and approved at the first International Workshop on National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, held in Paris 7-9 October 1991. 3 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action; Part 1, para. 36. 4 The most recent is Human Rights Council resolution 27/L.25, adopted on 23 September 2014. 5 The most recent is General Assembly resolution 68/171, adopted on 18 December 2013. 6 GANHRI has prepared a compilation of treaty monitoring committee recommendations concerning national institutions, arranged by treaty committee and region, available at http://nhri.ohchr.org/EN/IHRS/TreatyBodies/Pages/default.aspx. Introduction for users | 1