14.5. INTERNATIONAL RELEASE The NHRI should also release the report to the international community. International human rights mechanisms, both individuals and groups, take great interest in the work of NHRIs. They rightly see NHRIs as official, State bodies but independent of their Governments. They therefore accord added weight to the views, findings and recommendations of NHRIs. They look to NHRIs to provide them with the credible, reliable, objective information and advice they require to fulfil their responsibilities. They will be very interested in the inquiry’s report. For the NHRI, international release of the inquiry’s report is a good means to generate international scrutiny of the State and to promote international monitoring of implementation of the report. It can assist in encouraging the implementation of the recommendations, especially if the State is likely to be called on to answer questions from UN treaty monitoring bodies and the Human Rights Council about the findings of the report and the implementation of its recommendations. The inquiry report should be sent to all relevant international human rights mechanisms, such as treaty monitoring bodies, special procedure mandate holders, expert and intergovernmental working groups, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and so on. A report may be relevant because of the particular issue covered or the inclusion of material about a particular populations group or sector. Most inquiry reports are likely to be relevant to all the treaty monitoring bodies and to a large number of the special procedures. Inquiry reports will certainly be relevant in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) procedure of the Human Rights Council. The UPR looks widely at the human rights situation in the State under review. It is not limited to a particular issue or particular population group. No matter what human rights issues a report raises, it will be relevant to the UPR. The report can and should be provided through the formal channel of the OHCHR. However, the OHCHR is able to include only a short summary of any report in the official documents for the UPR. Therefore, in addition, the report should be forwarded to all member States of the Human Rights Council and as many observer States and NGOs as possible. The NHRI can encourage discussion of the report’s findings and recommendations in the Council. If it has A status accreditation as being fully compliant with the Paris Principles, it can address the Council directly to raise the report’s findings and recommendations and urge implementation. KEY POINTS: CHAPTER 14 • Releasing the report is the culmination of the inquiry’s work of investigation but it inaugurates a new stage of activity in promoting the report’s findings and recommendations and its implementation. • The inquiry should plan the release carefully, well in advance, with its focus firmly on promoting implementation of the recommendations. • The release should occur in some kind of public event or activity and should be accompanied by a series of other activities to raise awareness of the report’s contents and to promote its implementation. Chapter 14: Release the report | 73