Commission to take on role of national preventive mechanism

A high-level consultation of key stakeholders has agreed that the Mongolia's new torture prevention body – the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) – should be established within the National Human Rights Commission.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs, in collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), convened a meeting on the "Establishment of National Preventive Mechanism in Mongolia" on 17-18 October 2018.

The meeting brought together representatives from a wide range of stakeholders, including the UN Sub-Committee on Prevention of Torture, OHCHR, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs, State General Prosecutor's Office of Mongolia, General Police Department, General Executive Agency of Court Decision, General Staff of the Mongolian Armed Forces, Amnesty International, Open Society Forum and other civil society organisations.

Mongolia ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture on 11 December 2014. Under this treaty, States are obliged to establish a system for independent visits to all places of detention in the country.

The aim of these visits by the NPM is to identify the risk factors that can lead to torture and ill-treatment of people deprived of their liberty and then propose concrete recommendations to address those issues.

In some countries, the national human rights institution (NHRI) is designated as the sole national preventive mechanism. In other countries, the NPM can involve representatives from the NHRI working in partnership with representatives from civil society organisations.

At the consultation in Ulaanbaatar, the stakeholders agreed that the NPM mandate and functions should be assigned to the National Human Rights Commission of Mongolia, drawing on the best practices of other countries.

This expanded mandate will be reflected in the revised draft law on the National Human Rights Commission of Mongolia, which is currently being drafted by the Ministry of Justice and Home Affairs.

Date: 24 October 2018