A/HRC/41/44/Add.2 Social Charter and its Additional Protocol Providing for a System of Collective Complaints; the European Convention on the Suppression of Terrorism; the European Convention on the Legal Status of Migrant Workers; the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities; the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings; the Council of Europe Convention on the Prevention of Terrorism; and the Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds from Crime and on the Financing of Terrorism. 15. The Netherlands has established a national human rights institution according to the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles): the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights. There are also two ombudsperson offices dealing with human rights issues, the National Ombudsman and the Ombudsman for Children. There is also an Ombudsman for Curaçao. 16. The Netherlands has adopted several national action plans regarding human rights issues. III. Efforts towards the advancement of human rights at the international level A. Foreign policy and human rights, democracy and rule of law 17. The Netherlands has a long-standing tradition of supporting human rights at home and abroad. Human rights are enshrined in the Dutch Constitution, and the State is committed to implementing the many international instruments to which the Netherlands is a party. The Netherlands has also developed a National Action Programme on Discrimination and was in the process of elaborating a new National Action Plan on Human Rights at the time of the visit. 18. The Independent Expert was informed that human rights constitute the cornerstone of Dutch foreign policy.2 Within the European Union, the Netherlands advocates its human rights policy at both multilateral and country levels, since it is the “silver thread” of European Union external policy and, since late 2016, an explicit part of the European Union Global Strategy. Human rights was also one of the country’s priorities as a member of the Security Council in 2018, with a special focus on promoting the international legal order and the fight against impunity. The Netherlands advocates greater attention to human rights violations as a warning sign and cause of threats to peace and security. 19. The Dutch foreign policy reflects the conviction of the Government and its coalition parties that observance of human rights will lead to a more stable and prosperous world which, as the Minister of Foreign Affairs affirmed in the parliamentary debate on his ministry’s budget in November 2017, is in the interests of the Netherlands. The Independent Expert was informed, and observed, that promoting human rights was in the country’s own interest because democracies governed by the rule of law provide the most fertile soil for prosperity, stability, growth and development. 20. The Independent Expert was informed that the budget of the Netherlands Human Rights Fund was being increased by €7.4 million in 2018 from the previous year (of which €5.4 million will be included in the First Supplementary Budget and €2 million in the Second Supplementary Budget), and by €9.6 million from 2019. Furthermore, the coalition agreement of the governing parties explicitly affirms the need to promote the international legal order and human rights in foreign policy. The Human Rights Fund specifically mentions a number of vulnerable groups: lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons, religious minorities and journalists. The Government is also continuing existing efforts to defend freedom of expression, advance equal rights for women and girls, protect 2 For more information, see Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Human Rights Report 2017: Updated International Human Rights Policy: Activities and Result, The Hague, August 2018. 5