Pakistan’s National Commission for Human Rights’ Engagement with the United Nation’s Human Rights Monitoring Mechanisms: Law, Practice, Challenges and Way Forward
Keywords:
National Commission for Human Rights Pakistan, NHRI’s cooperation with the UN, Alternative Reporting, Independence and effectiveness of NCHR, Paris Principles, Treaty Bodies, Universal Periodic ReviewAbstract
The National Commission for Human Rights Pakistan (NCHR) is the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions accredited ‘A’ status national human rights institution of Pakistan. It is mandated to monitor Pakistan’s adherence to international human rights standards and commitments. The law guarantees NCHR’s independence and empowers it to contribute to state reports, conduct research on treaty bodies recommendations, advice the government on effective implementation of ratified international treaties on human rights and take any appropriate measure which it considers necessary to promote human rights in Pakistan. However, NCHR faced significant legal and operational challenges that impeded its independence and effectiveness in engaging with UN human rights monitoring mechanisms. This study discusses these challenges and recommend measures to address them.
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