A/HRC/RES/27/18 procedural reforms, conducting practical and relevant human rights training and education, and raising public awareness and advocacy about the promotion and protection of human rights; 8. Stresses the importance of financial and administrative independence and the stability of national human rights institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights, and notes with satisfaction the efforts of those Member States that have provided their national human rights institutions with more autonomy and independence, including by giving them an investigative role or enhancing such a role, and encourages other Governments to consider taking similar steps; 9. Recognizes that national human rights institutions and their respective members and staff should not face any form of reprisal or intimidation, including political pressure, physical intimidation, harassment or unjustifiable budgetary limitations, as a result of activities undertaken in accordance with their respective mandates, including when taking up individual cases or when reporting on serious or systematic violations in their countries; 10. Recognizes the role that national human rights institutions can play in preventing and addressing cases of reprisal as part of supporting the cooperation between their Governments and the United Nations in the promotion of human rights, including by contributing to follow-up actions, as appropriate, to recommendations made by international human rights mechanisms; 11. Emphasizes that any cases of alleged reprisal or intimidation against national human rights institutions and their respective members and staff or against individuals who cooperate or seek to cooperate with national human rights institutions should be promptly and thoroughly investigated, with the perpetrators brought to justice; 12. Welcomes the growing number of Member States establishing or considering the establishment of national human rights institutions in accordance with the Paris Principles, and welcomes in particular the large number of States that have accepted recommendations to establish national human rights institutions through the universal periodic review and, where relevant, by treaty bodies and special procedures; 13. Also welcomes the continuing number of national institutions seeking accreditation status through the International Coordinating Committee, and encourages national institutions, including ombudsman institutions, to seek accreditation status; 14. Further welcomes the important role of the International Coordinating Committee, in close cooperation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in assessing conformity with the Paris Principles and in assisting States and national institutions, when requested, to strengthen national human rights institutions in accordance with the Paris Principles; 15. Encourages the Secretary-General to continue to give high priority to requests from Member States for assistance in the establishment and strengthening of national human rights institutions in accordance with the Paris Principles; 16. Welcomes the efforts made by the High Commissioner to strengthen United Nations system-wide coordination on national human rights institutions, and encourages all United Nations human rights mechanisms, as well as its agencies, funds and programmes, to work within their respective mandates with national human rights institutions; 17. Calls upon the Secretary-General to continue to encourage national human rights institutions to interact with and advocate for independent participation in all relevant United Nations mechanisms, in accordance with their respective mandates; 3