As part of the criteria for the evaluation of candidates for the IACHR and the IACtHR, the national nomination process through which their selection has taken place is a key factor.
For the Panel, the development of transparent, participatory national nomination processes based on the merits and competencies of the candidates contributes to ensuring the independence, impartiality, and suitability of the future members of the IACHR and the IACtHR.
In this regard, the Panel has identified that there are currently States that have or have had internal nomination and selection processes for candidates to the Inter-American Human Rights System, or that have promoted criteria for this selection. Below, we present and applaud the following States that have incorporated this policy in favor of the transparency, independence, impartiality, and suitability of candidates:
ARGENTINA:
In the 2023 report, the Panel observed that Argentina had a recently institutionalized and formalized mechanism through Resolution No. 167 20/2023 of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As detailed in the report, this mechanism aimed to ensure greater transparency, as well as guarantee the technical competence, independence, gender equity, and diversity of the candidates to be ultimately presented by Argentina before international and regional human rights protection bodies.
In the 2023 IAHRS elections, Argentina implemented this mechanism to select its candidate. To this end, it formally published the vacancy for candidates to the IACHR on the Argentine Foreign Ministry’s website. The candidate selection process included several stages, including: the opening for applications; receiving comments and observations on the candidacies, and new submissions from civil society; the validation stage of the candidacies; public hearings in which each candidate had to make a presentation and respond to questions from the Selection Committee and interested parties; and the preparation of a technical analysis report by the Selection Committee, based on previously established criteria, to facilitate the decision-making of the authorities regarding the choice of the person to be presented by Argentina as a candidate for the IACHR (Final Report of 2023).
Regarding the criteria used by the Selection Committee, Argentina informed the Panel that the following factors were considered:
- Competence and recognized experience in the field of human rights;
- Commitment to international and regional human rights standards;
- Knowledge of the Inter-American Human Rights System;
- Equitable participation of women;
- Federal representation; and
- Language proficiency.
CHILE:
Similarly, in the 2023 report, the Panel documented the candidate selection process for the IAHRS implemented by Chile. In this case, the Panel learned that the country included an evaluation process through an “ad-hoc mechanism,” with the participation of the Director of the Human Rights Division, the Deputy Director of the Human Rights Division, the Director of the Multilateral Division of the Foreign Ministry, the Chilean Ambassador to the OAS, and the Head of the Subdirectorate of Protocol in the Subsecretariat for Human Rights. As a result, four people entered the process and were interviewed by the “ad-hoc mechanism.” Subsequently, the mechanism prepared a report that was sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which in turn forwarded it to the President of the Republic with the nomination proposal.
The Panel was informed that, during this nomination process, the “ad-hoc mechanism” received the academic and professional backgrounds of the candidates to evaluate them. During the interview, the “ad-hoc mechanism” considered, among other factors, the following criteria:
- High moral authority;
- Recognized competence in human rights;
- Independence and impartiality; and
- Contribution to the IAHRS.
UNITED STATES:
In the case of the United States' nomination process, the Panel noted in the 2023 report that it received information indicating that when selecting candidates, the U.S. government seeks feedback from civil society and academics to help identify individuals for nomination to the IACHR. For this purpose, the Department of State uses the following guiding criteria:
- Knowledge of public international law, international human rights law, and the IAHRS;
- Political and social awareness of the political and social context of Latin America and the Caribbean;
- Proficiency in Spanish as a working language, and ideally Portuguese or French;
- Adequate understanding of the U.S. legal system, including the approach to international law in domestic law and the U.S. positions on international human rights obligations;
- Diplomatic and interpersonal skills;
- Ability to dedicate sufficient time and energy to the IACHR;
- Ability to serve independently and impartially without compromising the dignity or prestige of the commissioner;
- Ability to engage with OAS Member States; and
- Strong management capabilities.
According to the information received by the Panel and detailed in the 2023 report, these criteria do not include diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA). Furthermore, on this occasion, the Department of State allowed only two weeks for civil society to provide feedback on the selection process.
Additionally, for the selection of IACHR members in 2025, the Panel highlighted in its report of that same year that the U.S. Mission to the OAS issued an open call to nominate a candidate for the IACHR through email and social media. The criteria guiding the candidate selection at this time were:
- Experience in public international law, international human rights law, and the IAHRS;
- Knowledge of the current political and social realities of Latin America and the Caribbean;
- Professional fluency in Spanish and ideally Portuguese and/or French;
- Knowledge of the U.S. legal system, including its approach to international law in domestic law and U.S. positions on international legal obligations and other international commitments in the human rights field;
- Diplomatic and interpersonal skills;
- Ability to dedicate sufficient time and energy to IACHR duties;
- Ability to serve independently and impartially, without any personal or professional issues affecting the dignity or prestige of a commissioner;
- Possession of education and skills of broad interest to OAS Member States;
- Experience working in complex and dynamic organizations; and
- Strong managerial and administrative skills with experience in reforming processes and institutional structures to be more efficient and effective.
Furthermore, the nominations were required to include the candidate’s updated CV, along with a statement of interest written by the candidate, outlining their ideas for tangible reforms to strengthen the operations of the IACHR.