The Strength of Our Commitments: National Human Rights Institutions in Europe and Beyond

A deep dive into the mechanics of national human rights institutions and the forces that make or break their success.

In the years since World War II, the endeavor to promote human rights has gained momentum and become increasingly important within international relations. Yet these efforts often run into serious problems of enforcement.

Many countries formed national human rights institutions (NHRIs) with independent mandates to support and monitor government compliance with international human rights law. Be they commissions, ombudsmen, or tribunals, these institutions vary in their power and impact. For this book, Corina Lacatus surveyed NHRIs in Europe and around the world to determine their effectiveness and explain why some succeed while others fail.

The Strength of Our Commitments explores the relationship between the domestic and international support an institution receives and its ability to secure resources, credibility, and tangibly improve human rights conditions. Lacatus shows that NHRIs can be models of resilience, even in the face of opposition from political elites. Although their impact on human rights is difficult to measure, The Strength of Our Commitments shows how NHRIs’ strength comes from clearly defined formal powers, strong institutional leadership, and independence from political interference.

Corina Lacatus is associate professor of global governance at Queen Mary University of London. She is the author of The (In)visibility Complex.