Interpol Structure & Leadership Each member state has an Interpol National Central Bureau (NCB), which serves as a point of contact for the global Interpol system. Interpol’s activities are run by the staff of the General Secretariat, led by the secretary general. Interpol has two governing bodies: the General Assembly, and the Executive Committee. The General Assembly contains representatives from each member state, who come together annually to vote on Interpol activities and policies. The Executive Committee contains 13 members elected by the General Assembly, including the president of Interpol who is tasked with “the execution of the General Assembly’s decisions and the administration and work of the General Secretariat.” The president of Interpol is an official from the national administration of a member state, elected by the General Assembly for a four-year term.7 The president is expected to preside over internal meetings, ensure that Interpol’s activity is aligned with internal policy decisions, and coordinate closely with the secretary general. The role is part-time and unpaid. Over the past several years, there have been acute issues with the Interpol Presidency being held by officials from governments with poor human rights records, calling into question Interpol’s commitment to its human rights obligations. The current president of Interpol is Maj. Gen. Ahmed Naser al-Raisi of the UAE, who is also the Emirati inspector general of the Ministry of Interior. His candidacy and then election in November 2021 raised human rights alarms due to the history of abuses by the UAE state security apparatus which General al-Raisi is responsible for investigating as inspector general. In 2017, the presidency was held by Chinese Vice-Minister for Public Security Meng Hongwei. Human Rights Watch and other organizations expressed concern about Interpol respecting human rights under Hongwei’s leadership, particularly given that the Ministry of Public Security is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party and has been tasked with silencing government critics. The ministry has harassed, arbitrarily detained, and tortured countless people. In 2018, Meng, who was based in France, went missing. After almost two weeks, news emerged that he was being held in Chinese custody and was under investigation by the new government’s anti-corruption unit and that he had resigned from his post as Interpol president. Meng was sentenced to 13-and-a-half years’ imprisonment by a Chinese court in 2020. 7 Correspondence from Interpol’s General Secretariat to Human Rights Watch dated December 13, 2023 “WE WILL FIND YOU” 34