The Kukmin Ilbo decided to find out.

Nearly half of the recommendations issued by the National Human Rights Commission (국가인권위원회) are ignored. Other are implemented by organizations but only in a perfunctory manner. The result is that the prestige of the NHRC dimishes and more organizations ignore it.

According to statistics published  on the 25th as ‘인권위 권고 수용 현황’, the organization has issued 2,356 recommendations since its establishment in 2001, and in just 58.3% (1,373) of those cases did the advised organization obey the recommendation.  That is a large difference from the 89.1% figure published by the NHRC last November, its eighth anniversary. That figure included cases where the recommendation was partly implemented, where it was under consideration, and where no reply had been made.

The study found a decreasing trend over the past four years as the rate fell from 75.9% in 2003 to 52.3% in 2008 and 35.1% in 2009.

The rate of petitions. leading to implementation of recommendations fell from a high of 90.4% in 2003, the beginning of the Roh Moo-hyun administration, to 74.6% in 2007, 57.7% in 2008, and 39.2% in 2009.

The rate of implementation of recommendations for reforms of courts and other government agencies was even worse, at just 27.7% (129 out of 466). The rate was 50% in 2002, the end of the Kim Dae-jung administration, 50% at the beginning of the Roh administration, and last year was just 12%.

Professor Han Sang-hui of Konkuk University said, “the NHRC cannot independently take action, so this shows the power of political influence.”

The study concluded that organizations that only partly implement the Commission’s recommendations do so to reduce unwanted attention. The rate of non-implementation has been between 8% and 12% each year. The rate of partial implementation rose from 11% (30 cases) in 2003 to 20% (60 cases) in 2005, double the previous rate. 90 such cases were recorded in 2006 and 2009. Of the total 2,356 cases, 410 (17.4%) resulted in partial implementation.

It appears that organizations which do a partial implementation were counted if they did at least two of the recommendations. For example, when the NHRC recommended punishments, training, or strengthened prevention policies, the organization might train only the person involved and not hand down any punishments or reformed policies, yet that would count as partial implementation.

A member of the NHRC said, “government organizations such as the police place little importance on systematic reform, and they do a partial implementation just t say they are following the NHRC’s recommendation… that’s no different from a zero implementation.”

Many times no reply at all is made the NHRC’s recommendation. Of the total cases, 321 resulted in no reply three months after promises of “consideration”. In 97 cases a recommendation was issued in 2009 and still has not been responded to.

Professor Park Chan-woon of Hanyang University said, “the present administration is causing the NHRC to be devalued… the NHRC should be an organization on par with the Supreme Court or Constitutional Court.”