Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consideration does she give to a candidate’s or their home country’s human rights record when assessing their suitability to be president of Interpol.
The Government strongly supports INTERPOL’s efforts to ensure systems are in place that protect individuals’ human rights in line with Article 3 of INTERPOL's Constitution which strictly forbids any intervention or activities of a political, military, religious or racial character.
The Home Office continues to work with INTERPOL and the National Crime Agency (NCA), which acts as the UK’s National Central Bureau (NCB) for INTERPOL, to monitor the effectiveness of existing safeguards. We encourage INTERPOL to uphold international human rights obligations and we won’t hesitate to recommend further reforms to INTERPOL as necessary.
During the G7 Interior and Security Ministers’ meeting in London on 7-9 September we also secured commitments from international partners to strengthen our collective efforts to deter the misuse of INTERPOL systems and support organisational reform and governance at INTERPOL.
Proportionate due diligence is undertaken into individuals seeking election to the role of INTERPOL President. In the run up to the elections at the General Assembly, officials from the Home Office, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the National Crime Agency are in regular contact with international counterparts. The decision on who to support will be based on a thorough assessment of the merits of each candidate.