APF to consider changes to membership rules

Proposed changes to the process for obtaining APF membership will be considered during the organisation’s 14th Annual Meeting, to be held in Amman, Jordan, in August.

The APF Forum Council will discuss whether to continue with its existing membership system or to adopt the process and recommendations of the International Coordinating Committee for National Human Rights Institutions (ICC).

The ICC has responsibility for the accreditation of NHRIs at the international level and accreditation by the ICC provides the basis for NHRI participation in a range of UN human rights fora.

At a meeting of the APF Forum Council in Geneva last month, held in conjunction with the 22nd Meeting of the ICC, the APF Secretariat presented a discussion paper examining the suspension of the APF accreditation process, with an accreditation classification determined by the ICC.

The proposal outlined a number of key benefits:

• Suspension of the APF process reduces the potential for different standards and results at the international and regional level. 
• At present, members are required to prepare two sets of application forms and related documentation for processes that are largely similar in outcome. Removal of the APF process reduces a significant cost to members, both in time and resources.
• The APF participates in the ICC’s accreditation process, through its regional representative (currently Korea) and the APF Secretariat. This involvement, which helps ensure the treatment of APF members is both procedurally fair and equitable, has already been successful in proposing changes in practice and procedure on behalf of APF members.

The proposal was developed by the APF Secretariat following a request by Forum Councillors at the 12th Annual Meeting to review the dual ICC and APF membership accreditation systems.

A formal submission, which will include feedback on the proposal received from APF members, will now be prepared for consideration at the upcoming Annual Meeting.

In addition, the APF Forum Council will also consider whether to separate the APF’s Annual Business Meeting from the Annual Conference, with the latter to become a biennial conference.

The proposal seeks to refocus the annual meetings on their original purpose – to provide APF members with the opportunity to discuss the work and direction of the APF, share experiences and develop and build relationships – while still hosting a major conference every two years to facilitate broad regional engagement on human rights issues involving all stakeholders.