Representatives from four National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) have participated in a virtual dialogue hosted by the APF to share the experiences and challenges of detention monitoring during COVID-19.

Held on 8 July, the APF Dialogue: Exchanges on NHRIs in the Monitoring of Detention Centres during COVID-19 was attended by leaders and staff from the National Institution for Human Rights in Bahrain (NIHR), the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM), the Palestine Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) and the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines (CHR). 

The virtual session was facilitated by Pip Dargan, APF Principal Adviser, Capacity Assessments and International Engagement and Fasoha Aishath, APF Manager of Gender and Pacific Programmes.

The purpose of the dialogue was to provide a platform for NHRIs to share experiences and practices in relation to monitoring detention centres during the COVID-19 pandemic.

NHRI representatives provided insight into some of the unique challenges of detention monitoring that have arisen as a result of the pandemic and shared the technologies they have utilised to support their monitoring practices.

The dialogue was also an opportunity to discuss the role of NHRIs in advising governments on legislation or detention centre reforms, and how each institution had undertaken initiatives to protect the human rights of individuals in detention during COVID.