Republic of Korea The Commission shall perform the following duties: … 9. Exchanges and cooperation with human rights-related international organizations or foreign organizations for human rights National Human Rights Commission Act 2001 Article 19 NHRI associations can take joint positions on major human rights issues and situations. • They have issued public statements on critical human right situations, principally through the media and online, for example, - The APF statement on 29 June 2020 condemning the killings of two staff of the Afghanistan Independent Commission on Human Rights 48 - The GANHRI statement on 17 October 2023 on the situation in Palestine and Israel following the attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in southern Israel on 7 October 2023 and the Israeli military attack on Gaza and in the Occupied West Bank in response49 - The APF statement on 18 October 2023 on the escalating armed conflict in Israel and Gaza.50 • They have made official statements in UN forums, for example, - The GANHRI statement to the UN Human Rights Council on 29 September 2022 on reprisals against human rights defenders, including staff of NHRIs51 - The GANHRI statement to the UN Human Rights Council on 24 February 2021 on human rights and climate change52 - The GANHRI statement on 3 March 2022 on the human rights situation in Ukraine53 - The European Network of National Human Rights Institutions statement in March 2022 on the human rights of older persons54 - The Network of African National Human Rights Institutions statement on 8 March 2024 on the right to social security55 - The GANHRI statement to the UN Human Rights Council on 13 September 2024 on the human rights of older persons56 - The GANHRI statement to the UN Human Rights Council on 26 September 2024 on reprisals against human rights defenders, including staff of NHRIs.57 • They have issued declarations on important human rights themes of current concern, for example, - GANHRI’s Kyiv-Copenhagen Outcome Declaration on Torture and Other Ill-treatment issued on 8 November 202358 - GANHRI’s statement of 8 May 2024 on business and human rights.59 One of the key roles of NHRIs’ associations is to support individual NHRIs when they or their leaders and staff are under threat.60 The threat may be from legislative change that weakens the independence and authority of an NHRI, budget cuts that make the work of the NHRI impossible, actual violence or threats of violence against individual NHRI leaders or staff, and political attacks on NHRI leaders and staff. Some of the examples above reflect this role in supporting individual NHRIs under pressure. NHRIs individually also support other NHRIs when under pressure. 48. https://www.asiapacificforum.net/news/apf-condemns-killing-of-two-afghanistan-nhri-staff. 49. https://ganhri.org/ganhri-calls-for-respect-of-international-law-international-protection-of-civilians/. 50. https://www.asiapacificforum.net/news/apf-statement-on-the-escalating-armed-conflict-in-israel-and-gaza. 51. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/HRC51_Reprisals_GANHRIstatement_f.pdf. 52. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/HRC46-General-Segment-for-delivery.pdf. 53. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/HRC-49-Final-GANHRI-statement-Ukraine-for-delivery.pdf. 54. Accessible through https://ganhri.org/49th-session-of-the-human-rights-council/. 55. Accessible through https://ganhri.org/55th-session-of-the-human-rights-council/. 56. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Final_HRC57_GANHRI_statement_olderp-final-for-delivery.pdf. 57. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Final_HRC57_GANHRI_statement_reprisals-for-delivery.pdf. 58. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Kyiv-Copenhagen-Outcome-Declaration_EN.pdf. 59. https://ganhri.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/GANHRI_2024_Annual_Conference_Outcome_Statement_EN.pdf. 60. https://ganhri.org/support-to-nhris/. 34 National action on international issues