NHRC to host annual meet of rights groups

The NHRC will Wednesday host the 19th annual general meeting of the Asia-Pacific Forum (APF) of the National Human Rights Institutions that aims to promote cooperation, coordination and promotion of human rights issues in the Asia-Pacific region.

The forum that includes 15 NHRIs and six associate members across the Asia-Pacific region will discuss their collective agenda on human rights of some vulnerable sections of the society in the next five years.

"There will also be a dialogue of the representatives of the NHRIs with Asian NGO Network on National Human Rights Institutions (ANNI) to discuss practical and constructive ways in which they can engage and cooperate on the APF's Strategic Plan," said National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) secretary general Rajesh Kishore.

"On the last day of the meeting Sep 5, specific decisions will be taken on human rights issues related to women and children," he said.

The APF was established in 1996 when four NHRIs of India, Australia, Indonesia and New Zealand met in Darwin, Australia.

The NHRC is hosting the meeting for the third time. It organised the second and the seventh APF annual general meeting in 1997 and in 2002, respectively.