 The mandate of the Commission, set out in the Human Rights Commission Act 1999, was to educate the general public about human rights and to make recommendations to the government about matters affecting human rights.The Commission's complaints and legal divisions were empowered to receive complaints of alleged violations of human rights, investigate them, and seek to resolve the issues by conciliation or by referral to the Commission's legal division for court action.The Commission could refer complaints to the relevant ministry or department if the matter was not within the Commission's jurisdiction.