We engage in countries in which we believe we have the opportunity to make change happen. Independent national and international monitoring of places of detention, and unhindered access to such places, is a key tool to monitor progress of penal reforms. Similarly, the use of international mechanisms helps to hold states accountable to the reform promises made.
We firmly believe in the value of independent national monitoring mechanisms. Those relevant to our mandate, funded when possible through state budgets, include national human rights institutions that comply with the Paris Principles, National Preventive Mechanisms established under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture.
In all the countries in which PRI works, one of our priorities is to strengthen independent monitoring mechanisms by working to increase their capacity, visibility, and political weight.
International mechanisms also play a critical role in holding criminal justice systems to account and preventing impunity.
We believe that interaction between international human rights expert bodies and states can generate roadmaps for reform of criminal justice systems that align with the human rights obligations that states have ratified. We work actively with international mechanisms and will advise governments on how they can implement their recommendations. We also report to review mechanisms systematically and constructively, including on the progress and implementation of reform projects in which PRI is involved.