T E N Y E A R S O F T H E C O M M I S S I O N I N R E T RO S P E C T ● The wording of section 20(2), which has resulted in delays in tabling the annual reports before Parliament and, consequently, in making them available to the public. ● The wording of section 36(1) which can be used to block the "better protection" of human rights in the country and which should be amended to give the National Human Rights Commission an over-arching ability to oversee issues of human rights violations and their remedies. ● The need to give the National Human Rights Commission certain powers of judicial superintendence, and powers similar to those under Article 136 of the Constitution, in order to prevent the adoption of erroneous positions in respect of the violation of human rights, or the taking of actions by a variety of Commissions in the country in ways that are contrary to established principles of human rights law and jurisprudence. ● The need to modify the provisions of section 36(2) in the interests of justice where, for any reason, the National Commission or a State Commission is satisfied, for reasons that should be recorded, that there are good and sufficient reasons for taking cognizance of a matter after the expiry of one year. ● The Commission is also of the view that the present section 37 of the Act should be omitted. Instead, it has proposed the inclusion of a provision similar to Article 139A of the Constitution, so that the National Human Rights Commission may be enabled, in appropriate cases, to establish uniformity in respect of the handling of cases that raise similar issues. B] Handling of complaints 2.9 A clear indication of the trust reposed in the Commission by the people of the country - and an equally clear indication of their yearning for a mechanism to redress their human rights grievances - is to be found in the number of complaints addressed to the Commission over the years. 2.10 This number has increased exponentially. By way of illustration, in the first six months of the Commission's existence, October 1993-31 March 1994, the Commission registered 496 cases. This number grew to 6,987 in 1994-95; 10,195 in 1995-96; 20,514 in 1996-97; 36,791 in 1997-98; 40,724 in 1998-99; ANNUAL REPORT 2002-2003 ... ... 13 ... ... ..