“Article 6 of the Act provides for the dismissal of the Director of the institution by the Parliament and lists the specific circumstances of dismissal. However, the Act does not provide further details on the dismissal process.

Further, the Act is silent on whether other Board members can be dismissed, by whom and following what process.

The SCA acknowledges that the NNHRI reports that it intends to propose amendments to its enabling law to specify the grounds and process for dismissal.

The SCA is of the view that, in order to address the Paris Principles requirement for a stable mandate, which is important in reinforcing independence, the enabling legislation of an NHRI must contain an independent and objective dismissal process.

The dismissal must be made in conformity with all the substantive and procedural requirements prescribed by law. The grounds for dismissal must be clearly defined and appropriately confined to those actions that impact adversely on the capacity of the member to fulfil his or her mandate. Where appropriate, the legislation should specify that the application of a particular ground must be supported by a decision of an independent body with appropriate jurisdiction. The dismissal should not be allowed solely on the discretion of the appointing authorities.

Such requirements ensure the security of tenure of the members of the governing body and are essential to ensure the independence of, and public confidence in, the senior leadership of an NHRI.”