Conference on the 30th Anniversary of the Paris Principle
Strengthening the Role of National Human Rights Institutions and Local Governments in Protecting and Promoting Human Rights
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea ( Chairperson Song Doo-hwan) co-hosted the Conference on the 30th Anniversary of the Paris Principles with the Delegation of the European Union to the Republic of Korea, the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions and the Council on Municipal Human Rights Committees.
The Paris Principles are the "Principles on the Status of National Human Rights Institutions" developed at the First World Workhsop of National Human Rights Institutions held in Paris in 1992 and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 December 1993, which define the mandate, independence and functioning of national human rights institutions.
At this conference, experts from national human rights institutions, international organizations, academia and civil society activists reflected on the significance of the Paris Principles and explored ways forward for national human rights institutions, while also discussing ways to strengthen the role of national human rights institutions and local governments in maintaining and developing local human rights protection systems in light of recent developments such as the abolition of human rights ordinances by some local governments in Korea.
After keynote speeches by Ms. Jin Park, Secretary General of the National Human Rights Commission, and Mr. Michael O'Flaherty, Director of the EU FRA, on the importance of independence and solidarity of national human rights institutions and the impact of local human rights guarantees, the conference featured three sessions: 1) 30 Years of the Paris Principles: The role of national human rights institutions and the way forward 2) The role and challenges of local human rights mechanisms 3) Localizing the international human rights standard and the role of national human rights institutions.
Participants, both on-site and via Zoom, had the opportunity to deepen their understanding of the importance of the Paris Principles and the role of national human rights institutions, and to exchange different views on the protection of human rights at the local level.
