International human rights law obliges States to establish adequately specialized structures for the promotion and protection of fundamental rights, distinguishing, on one hand, strictly governmental apparatuses, and on the other, independent structures whose objective is to participate in policy formation, promote and develop a human rights culture, and prevent violations through means that differ from those of state powers.

Given that Italy has not yet established an independent National Human Rights Institution as recommended by the United Nations and various other international organizations (the various bills aimed at establishing a National Human Rights Commission have not yet been translated into law), the framework of national bodies with general or specific tasks of promoting human rights can be articulated as follows: