National human rights institutions in the Asia Pacific region : change agents under conditions of uncertainty

In the first section, we provide a brief history of the establishment of NHRIs in the region and note how the different circumstances in which individual NHRIs were created have influences their form and subsequent diverse experiences. In the second part of this chapter, we explore the history of NHRI and NGO engagement and notes that, in a development distinctive to the Asia Pacific region, engagement between NHRIs and NGOs has evolved into sophisticated and formalized processes for interaction. In the third part of the chapter, we consider the impact of the regional network of NHRIs, the APF, in establishing new NHRIs, strengthening existing NHRIs, providing opportunities for transnational collaboration on human rights issues, and enabling NHRIs within the region to act in international forums. Finally, we consider the challenges to the legitimacy of NHRIs in the region, most visibly (1) in circumstances where the NHRI has become "politicized" (the Fiji Human Rights Commission, (2) where the government has reduced budget or staffing of the institution (South Korea, Australia), and (3) where the government fails to provide the NHRI with the political, financial, and infrastructure support necessary to give the institution legitimacy within the political and social context in which it operates (Nepal).