CASE STUDY
Myanmar National Human Rights Commission
From its experience over two years in handling complaints of human rights
violations, the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
observed that a lack of knowledge about human rights on the part of
local authorities is one important factor that leads to many violations and
grievances. The NHRC considered that it needed to reach these authorities
and communities to educate them about human rights. It responded with a
large program of outreach to provide human rights information at the local level.
The NHRC conducted a series of workshops in 38 townships in various
states and regions between August 2013 and May 2014.234 The team of
Commissioners gave talks on the UDHR, the UN human rights mechanisms
and the work of NHRC. As part of its promotion work, the MNHRC also
arranged outreach visits by Commissioners and staff to seven other states
between July and November 2014.235 The visits had two purposes.
First, the NHRC conducted three-day workshops on human rights for
government officials, dealing with the historical development of international
human rights law, including the UDHR and the core human rights instruments,
with a particular focus on CEDAW, CRC and CRPD, to which Myanmar is party.
The lectures also covered the nature of NHRIs, their roles in the promotion
and protection of human rights at the national level, and the work of the NHRC
and how it relates to the global monitoring system, including the Universal
Periodic Review, the special procedures, and the treaty monitoring bodies.
Second, the NHRC organised human rights talks for the people in important
townships.
In addition, the Commission conducted many other promotional activities
during 2014, including a radio program in which a Commissioner answers
questions on human rights and a television program on children’s rights issues.
The NHRC has also undertaken awareness raising activities on specific
human rights issues. In cooperation with the Forest Peoples Programme,
based in London, the NHRC conducted a regional workshop on Agribusiness
and Human Rights, which followed similar meetings held in Cambodia and
Thailand under the sponsorship of the Forest Peoples Programme.
In October 2014, the NHRC organised a regional workshop on trafficking
in persons. As the issue involves many countries in the region as countries
of destination as well as countries of transit, the NHRC thought it should
organise a regional workshop to identify ways on processes to cooperate
and coordinate among the relevant countries. NHRIs in the region and
representatives of the relevant governments participated in the discussions.
The NHRC will publish a human rights booklet in the Myanmar language for
extensive distribution to the public. It will raise awareness of the basic norms
of human rights, educate people on what their rights are and help them
recognise when their rights are violated. It also plans to publish a quarterly
human rights magazine to contribute to the promotion of human rights in the
Myanmar over the longer term.