Introduction Chapter 1. Overview The National Human Rights Commission of the Republic of Korea (hereafter, “the Commission” or “the NHRCK”) is an independent national institution that advocates for the protection of human rights. The motivations for launching the Commission were to further the protection of human rights, realize the dignity and value of people and establish fundamental democratic order. The NHRCK marked its 11th anniversary in 2012 and decided to use the year as an opportunity to look back on its achievements and tasks that the Commission promoted through a variety of projects over the past decade, as well as to take a new leap forward. The Commission has done its utmost to ponder and resolve all kinds of human rights issues and challenges that continuously arise in our daily lives. Most notably, the Commission devised and initiated its promotion of the Three-Year Plan for the Promotion of Human Rights (2012~2014). 1. The Domestic and Foreign Environments in 2012 The environment the NHRCK worked in throughout 2012 proved to be more challenging to the Commission than any other year up to that point. This was because, first, it was asked by the international human rights community to play an active role as the national institution working on behalf of human rights, in light of the heightened status that the Republic of Korea (hereafter, “Korea”) has achieved in the international Introduction 13