The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), second meeting of the Civil Society Dialogue Platform open today Thursday at TANGO conference center and participants will be finalizing the draft concept note and terms of reference (ToR).
According to organisers civil society in The Gambia played a leading advocacy role in the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission. The selection panel which scrutinized and shortlisted the people who applied for the position of member of the Commission comprised mainly representatives of umbrella CSOs.
However, the NHRC is not a Civil Society Organisation or an NGO. While it is a State apparatus, the NHRC is independent of both civil society and the Government. It is a neutral fact finder, not advocate for one side or the other, and a ‘bridge’ between civil society and the Government.
However, a strong and effective civil society is vital to a vibrant human rights system. The NHRC is expected, in expanding its work, to establish a very good working relationship with civil society organizations devoted to promoting and protecting human rights, such as those working on economic and social development, to combating all forms of discrimination , to protecting particularly vulnerable groups (especially children, migrant workers, refugees, persons with disabilities ) or to specialized areas.
Civil Society Organisations play an important role in increasing public awareness of human rights issues, conducting education, training and research in this field, promotion and protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and contribution to standard setting.[1] Thus, the NHRC, with its role, legislative base and specific powers, can complement these important roles and contributions of Civil Society
From the mandate and functions of the NHRC, one fact is absolutely clear: working together with critical stakeholders, especially civil society organizations working on human rights, specific or general, is crucial and will ultimately deliver greater results for the people in The Gambia. It is therefore crucial to harness this power of coming together and bringing about increased unified action for the greater good of all the people.
This Dialogue Platform is expected to provide the opportunity for Civil Society in The Gambia to come together, discuss and strategize on how they can collectively work together to promote the respect and realization of human rights in The Gambia. Every actor has a role to play in ensuring human rights are realized, whether it is the State, a Civil Society Organization (CSO) or the people themselves. All actors are of the utmost importance in order to support, to promote action, to monitor and provide the grassroots with information ensuring that people’s rights are realized and are not violated.
The Civil Society Dialogue Platform aims to contribute to the monitoring of the implementation of national legislations, international and regional human rights legal instruments The Gambia is party to and to foster closer collaboration between civil society organizations (CSO) in The Gambia and the National Human Rights Commission in the promotion and protection of human rights in The Gambia.
