With regards to recent news reports about the downgrading of the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand’s status from “A” to “B” by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand (NHRCT) wishes to present relevant facts to avoid any misunderstanding on the matter as follows:

    1. The International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) is a global network of national human rights institutions which was established in 1993.  One of its main objectives is to strengthen member institutions in all parts of the world in line with the Paris Principles Relating to the Status of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, commonly known as the Paris Principles.  The Principles is recognized by the United Nations General Assembly as standard guidelines for national institutions in efficiently carrying out their mandates of promoting and protecting human rights at the national level.

    2. The NHRCT first submitted its application for accreditation and membership in the ICC in 2004 and was granted an “A” status as an institution in full compliance with the Paris Principles.  According to the ICC Statute, the members that are accredited with “A” status are to have their accreditation reviewed every five years as part of a regular process of re-accreditation.  The NHRCT submitted its application for the first re-accreditation in November 2008 and was granted an “A” status.  It applied for the second re-accreditation in November 2013.  After a one-year process of analysing all relevant information and documents provided by the NHRCT, the Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA), which was mandated by the ICC to review accreditation applications of its members, made a recommendation to the ICC in October 2014 to downgrade the NHRCT to  “B” status.  The recommendation was not to take effect for one year, during the period of which the NHRCT could provide the ICC with updated information and other documentary evidence necessary to establish the NHRCT’s continued conformity with the Paris Principles.

    3. The SCA’s recommendations to downgrade the NHRCT to “B” status were related to the following concerns:
        (1)  The SCA viewed that relevant legislation did not provide for a broad participation of civil society groups in the selection process for members of the NHRCT, nor did it ensure a merit-based selection and pluralism among the commissioners. 
        (2) The SCA expressed concern that the NHRCT had not addressed serious human rights violations in a timely manner, including the delay in completing the reports on the two violent incidents of political demonstrations that took place in 2010 and from the end of 2013 until mid-2014. 
        (3)  The SCA was of the view that the NHRCT’s legislation did not include a clear provision on functional immunity by protecting its members from legal liability for action undertaken in good faith in the course of their official duties.  Such provision was crucial in ensuring independence of the NHRCT members.

    4. In the one-year period since October 2014 during which the SCA allowed the NHRCT to submit further information, the NHRCT had made serious efforts to address the afore-mentioned SCA concerns.  It had accelerated the preparation of the report on political demonstrations during late 2013 to mid-2014, which was finally completed in August 2015.  On amendments of legislation relating to the selection process and functional immunity for members of the NHRCT, it had submitted information and recommendations on those two issues to those involved in the constitutional reform process that had started since November 2014 on many occasions.  However, the NHRCT’s efforts had not brought about concrete results as the draft constitution was not approved by the National Reform Council.

    5. Upon expiration of the one-year period for submission of further information, the current Commission, which assumed office on 26 November 2015, has pursued the effort to bring about legislative change further.  It met with the Chairman and members of the Constitution Drafting Committee to explain the needs for amendments in the constitution and NHRCT founding law on issues of concern to the SCA.  It had also made a proposal to introduce legislative change with immediate effect while the drafting of the constitution has yet to be concluded.   It proposed that the composition of the selection committee for NHRCT members as stipulated in the 2007 Constitution be expanded to include representatives of non-governmental organizations in the field of human rights and educational institutions offering human rights studies program.   It also suggested that a functional immunity be instituted to protect NHRCT members from legal liability for acts undertaken in good faith in their official capacity along the same line as that provided for in the 2009 Organic Act on Ombudsmen.  The NHRCT had informed the ICC Chairperson of its efforts in this regard.  However, the steps it had taken failed to change the ICC’s decision to downgrade the NHRCT’s status at the recommendation of the SCA.

    After the ICC’s decision to downgrade the NHRCT took effect, the Constitution Drafting Committee released to the public the first draft constitution on 29 January 2016.   The provisions of the draft constitution relating to the NHRCT provided for participation of representatives of non-governmental organizations in the field of human rights in the selection of NHRCT members as appeared in section 242 paragraph 3.  This is in line with the proposal the NHRCT put forward earlier to the Constitution Drafting Committee and is considered to be a significant development.

    6. Despite the ICC’s decision to downgrade the NHRCT from “A” to “B” status, the NHRCT will continue its efforts to ensure that provisions of the new constitution and its founding law that will come into force in the future relating to the issues of concern to SCA are in conformity with the Paris Principles.  While the downgrading of its status may impact on its role in international human rights fora to a certain extent, the NHRCT will continue to fully discharge its functions to promote and protect human rights on both domestic and international fronts.  It will work towards enhancing a better understanding and respect of human rights by all sectors of Thai society, ensuring that victims of human rights violations receive a fair remedy, cooperating with national human rights institutions of in various countries under existing international and regional frameworks, i.e. the ICC, the Asia-Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (APF) and the South East Asia National Human Rights Institutions Forum (SEANF), as well as with UN human rights mechanisms including by submitting reports on human rights situation in the country under the Universal Periodic Review and to relevant treaty bodies.

 National Human Rights Commission of Thailand
February 2016
 

15/02/2016