A successor for Michelle Bachelet: Antonio Guterres’ dilemma

Michelle Bachelet’s decision to step down as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights presents the UN Secretary-General with a difficult choice; that much is clear from the loud and sustained debate around her replacement. At issue? What should be the process to fill one of the most exposed but indispensable positions in the UN system, and what role should human rights play in the power structure of the UN?

Bachelet leaves office while widely criticized by civil society and governments alike for her refusal, so far, to publish her office’s report on violations of human rights in China. Many Geneva-based ambassadors tell The G|O that this episode actually reflects a broader crisis in the UN’s attempts to deal with gross human rights violations. The report’s handling illustrates how the Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) can end up as a hostage of a confrontation between two powerful members of the Security Council—in this case China and the US—and that human rights have become another theater in the struggle for hegemony.

Bachelet has been under pressure from both sides. As soon as the Biden administration entered the White House, her office was questioned on the report, with a request for transparency about crimes committed in China. Most recently, however, it has been Beijing applying pressure, insisting she should not release the document.

For activists and human rights defenders, the High Commissioner’s role should be to call out human rights abuses while being able to insulate the Office from the great superpower rivalry—a position summarized in a recent statement issued by Amnesty International, which attacked Bachelet’s “refusal to call out the Chinese government’s crimes against humanity in Xinjiang, and their dismal human rights record throughout the country,” claiming that by doing so, she “betrayed countless victims and survivors.”

“Without immediate action, Michelle Bachelet’s failure to stand up to political pressure from China will be a major part of her legacy,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard, a former UN Special Rapporteur.

The crisis around the China report is widely seen here as New York–made, inasmuch as it is the result of UN chief Antonio Guterres having chosen a “political animal” in Bachelet, rather than a strict human rights defender. By doing so, diplomats argue, he had been hoping to protect himself from pressure.
Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, Bachelet’s predecessor, missed no opportunity to blast violators of human rights at every occasion, naming names and making the job of UN S-G even more difficult than it already is. Guterres’ choice of Bachelet was  based on a decision to choose someone who could act behind the scenes, negotiate with governments, and reduce tensions. For Guterres, appointing someone as vocal as Zeid would only deepen the sense of mistrust and contribute to the possible collapse of multilateralism.

Hence the dilemma posed today by the search for Bachelet’s successor. If the OHCHR does not stand for a strong defense of human-rights , if the UN High Commissioner does not choose forceful action over privileged access, who will? But at the same time, in such a volatile geo-political context, should the risk be taken to appoint someone willing to speak truth to the superpowers and run the risk of increasing tensions?

On its wish list of the essential qualities required for the position, civil society has called for Guterres to nominate someone who is of “high moral standing and personal integrity, and who is independent and impartial and possesses competency and expertise in the field of human rights.” The document making these demands was signed by institutions including Amnesty International, ARTICLE 19, Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, Conectas Direitos Humanos, Human Rights Watch, International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Open Society Foundations and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT).

They also ask that the procedure be “open, transparent and merit-based,” a recommendation which seems not have been heeded by Antonio Guterres. Nothing, so far, has filtered out. Civil society has not been consulted. Informed sources say that Guterres’ choice has already been made; Michelle Bachelet will be leaving by August 31, so an announcement is likely to come soon.

And what about OHCHR’s report on China? Press reports say it might finally be released next week. During her final press conference this morning, Michelle Bachelet, however, refused to commit to releasing it before the end of her term. “We are still working on it,” she said. In all likelihood, her successor has received an advance copy of the draft. Dealing with it will be one of their first tests on the job.

- JC