A/67/293 Georgia provided information on its institutions, including a Civil Integration and Tolerance Council, a Council on National Minorities set up to facilitate dialogue between Government and national minorities, and a Council of Religions, promoting dialogue, integration and participation of religious associations. 71. Permanent assemblies or political bodies can facilitate minority representation in national political structures. The members of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan represent 40 of the largest ethnic groups. The Government states that it revives and promotes ethnic cultures, languages and traditions; strengthens inter-ethnic unity and harmony through the monitoring of ethnic relations; and makes recommendations on State policy. Deputies in the lower house of the parliament are appointed from among the members of the Assembly. The House of Federation of Ethiopia, which is the upper house of the parliament, is composed of representatives of over 60 “nations, nationalities and peoples”. It is intended to act as an assurance mechanism for the rights of ethnic groups, as established in the constitution. Such bodies must be based on principles of democratic accountability and electoral legitimacy. D. Consultants and focal points 72. Institutions, including ministries, may decide to have dedicated advisers, consultant posts or focal points within their institutional structures that have responsibility for minority issues. While such posts provide relatively low-level institutional attention, compared with dedicated institutions or departments, they can nevertheless fulfil important functions, raise awareness of minority issues in key policy and programme areas, and demonstrate institutional will to respond to minority concerns. Where advisory posts or focal points exist in different ministries, they may have the potential to promote coordination and information-sharing and joint projects. Given the specialist nature of such roles, priority should be given to the recruitment of minorities, including minority women. VIII. The role of independent national human rights institutions 73. National human rights institutions are independent, autonomous bodies created by law and should function in compliance with the principles relating to the status of national institutions (the Paris principles) (General Assembly resolution 48/134, annex). National human rights institutions include human rights commissions, ombudsman’s offices, and specialized institutions designed to protect the rights of disadvantaged or vulnerable groups. 30 In 2005, the United Nations Working Group on Minorities of the former Commission on Human Rights noted that national human rights institutions can contribute significantly to the promotion and protection of the rights of minorities and that there is growing recognition of the contribution that these institutions can make to safeguard the rights of the less advantaged groups of society, in close partnership with them. 31 Nevertheless, frequently such institutions lack clear and proactive mandates for addressing minority issues. __________________ 30 31 22 See “UNDP-OHCHR toolkit”. Available from http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/ NHRI/1950-UNDP-UHCHR-Toolkit-LR.pdf. See E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.5/2005/3. 12-45950