“In accordance with article 6 of the Law, CNIDH members are nominated by their respective organisations and appointed by Presidential decree.
The CNIDH reports that, in practice, the selection process is broad and transparent. In particular, an ad hoc committee composed of members elected by civil society is set up to elect members representing them. However, the SCA is of the view that the process currently enshrined in the Law (with the exception of the civil society representatives) is not sufficiently broad and transparent.
The SCA encourages the CNIDH to advocate for the formalization and application of a uniform process that includes requirements to:
- Publicize vacancies broadly;
- Maximize the number of potential candidates from a wide range of societal groups and educational qualifications;
- Promote broad consultation and / or participation in the application, screening, selection and appointment process;
- Assess applicants on the basis of pre-determined, objective and publicly-available criteria; and
- Select members to serve in their individual capacity rather than on behalf of the organization they represent.”