Endnote 1 The Republic of Korea accepted the individual communications procedures under five UN human rights treaty bodies: the Human Rights Committee, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Committee against Torture, and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 2 NHRCK, Recommendation for the formulation of the 4th NAP (July 2022). 3 NHRCK, The NHRCK written submission on the 4th cycle of Universal Periodic Review for the Republic of Korea (July 2022); NHRCK, Recommendation for the implementation of individual complaints procedures under the United Nations human rights treaties (December 2003). 4 For the same reason, the Chungcheongnam-do Provincial Ordinance on Human Rights was rescinded once in 2018. On the other hand, a constitutional petition was filed with the Constitutional Court by several teachers, students, and parents who claimed that the Seoul Metropolitan Ordinance on Student Human Rights prohibiting hate speech based on gender identity, religion, sexual orientation and other grounds infringes upon the freedom of expression. The Constitutional Court ruled against in December 2019 that the relevant provisions in the Seoul Ordinance were in conformity with the Constitution. 5 NHRCK, Opinion on the petition for the repeal of the Chungcheongnam-do Provincial Ordinance on Human Rights (May 2023); NHRCK, Statement of the NHCRK Chairperson on the movement to abolish municipal human rights ordinances (September 2022). 6 Statement of the Association of Human Rights Committees of Local Governance (18 October 2022). 7 NHRCK, Recommendation for the enactment of anti-discrimination act (July 2006). 8 NHRCK, Opinion on the enactment of the Equality and Anti-discrimination Act (July 2020). 9 The bill was the first to be proposed by the Government (Ministry of Justice). The antidiscrimination bill proposed by the Ministry of Justice at that time did not include several grounds of discrimination including sexual orientation, compared to the National Human Rights Commission Act. 10 Article 6 (1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea: Treaties duly concluded and promulgated under the Constitution and the generally recognized rules of international law shall have the same effect as domestic laws. 11 Judicial Policy Research Institute, Applying International Human Rights Treaties by Korean Courts: Normative Status and Interpretive Challenges (March 2020), p. xiv. 12 Ibid. 13 Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions Sub-Committee on Accreditation (GANHRI SCA), Report and Recommendations of Sub-Committee on Accreditation (18-29 October 2021). 14 The Plenary Committee of the NHRCK decided, on 22 February 2022, to submit the amendment bill of the National Human Rights Commission Act to establish provisions for the independent nomination committee for human rights commissioners. 15 Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions Sub-Committee on Accreditation (GANHRI SCA), Report and Recommendations of Sub-Committee on Accreditation (18-29 October 2021). 28