Freedom House does an annual list of the world’s most oppressive regimes. To some of us, it doesn’t come as a surprise that six of the 18 nations on the list are members of the UN Commission on Human Rights.

Significantly, six of the eighteen most repressive governments–those of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Zimbabwe–are members of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), representing nearly 11 percent of the 53-member body.

“Repressive governments enjoying CHR membership work in concert and have successfully subverted the Commission’s mandate,” said Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer Windsor. “Rather than serving as the proper international forum for identifying and publicly censuring the world’s most egregious human rights violators, the CHR instead protects abusers, enabling them to sit in judgment of democratic states that honor and respect the rule of law,” she said.

A report issued March 21 by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan acknowledged that the presence of these nations on the CHR has dealt a severe blow to the UN body’s credibility. Mr. Annan recommended that states elected to a reformed “Human Rights Council” be chosen based on their compliance with the “highest human rights standards.”

“The Secretary General’s recommendation is welcome: the solution to restoring the UN human rights panel’s credibility lies in the establishment of strict membership criteria,” said Ms. Windsor. “In the short-term, however, it is incumbent upon the CHR’s democratic member states to work together as an effective bloc that upholds the Commission’s mandate by strengthening and promoting human rights and democracy.”

An additional nine countries Freedom House rates as “Not Free” enjoy membership on the Commission: Bhutan, Egypt, Guinea, Mauritania, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Swaziland, and Togo. Together, “Not Free” countries comprise just over one quarter of the Commission’s membership. A breakdown by Freedom House ranking of CHR members available online.

Here is a link to the pdf online, as well as a breakdown on CHR members here.