Former Chilean President to Become UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

The Secretary-General of the United Nations has introduced Michelle Bachelet, the former President of Chile, as the new High Commissioner for Human Rights. Ms. Bachelet will lead a mechanism that oversees human rights violations and adherence in various countries, including Iran. The former Chilean President, aged 67, replaces Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, a Jordanian diplomat who has held the position since 2014. According to the Associated Press, a note from Antonio Guterres announcing Michelle Bachelet's appointment has been sent to the 193 member states of the United Nations, and a voting session is scheduled for Friday, although Ms. Bachelet's selection is considered certain. Michelle Bachelet served as President of Chile twice. A candidate of leftist parties, she won her second term in December 2013 by a significant margin against her electoral rival, becoming the first Chilean president to serve more than once after General Augusto Pinochet. Bachelet is a physician and a pediatric specialist. She is the daughter of a Chilean Air Force general who was imprisoned after the coup against Salvador Allende. General Alberto Bachelet was accused of 'treason' by Pinochet's regime and died months after being tortured due to cardiac arrest. Michelle Bachelet and her mother were also tortured in a secret prison for two weeks before eventually leaving their homeland. Bachelet was the head of the UN Women agency in 2010 and 2013. She is a single mother of three children and the first woman to reach the presidency in her homeland. Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein's term as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights will end at the end of August. The UN has various mechanisms and institutions for monitoring and working on human rights in general, and specifically on children's rights, labor rights, progress, and development globally; the Human Rights Council and the High Commissioner are institutions that directly oversee the state of human rights worldwide. The High Commissioner coordinates human rights activities within the UN and oversees the activities of the UN Human Rights Council. The UN Human Rights Council also appoints the organization's special rapporteur on human rights in Iran. Reports indicate that this council has introduced Javid Rahman, a Pakistani-British national, as the new rapporteur on Iran.