Assistant Human Rights Officer (SPB)

Contract

This is a UNV International University contract. This kind of contract is known as International UN Volunteer. It is normally internationally recruited only. More about UNV International University contracts.

Eligibility criteria

Candidate age: between 18 and 29 throughout the entire duration of their assignment, except the assignments in Headquarters duty stations. Nationals of the country of assignment are not eligible. Applicants must be students of any academic program (BA/BSc, Masters, PhD) and keep this status during the whole duration of their assignment, or be recent graduates.

Description of task

Under the direct supervision of Unit Coordinator, the International UN University Volunteers will:

• research a broad range of issues relating to racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and violence and discrimination against women, including constitutional provisions, legislation, administrative regulations, policies, and practices, and prepare analytical briefs and assessment reports for the Special Rapporteurs’ review and decisions on follow-up actions;
• assist in drafting a wide range of documents, notably correspondence with Governments, in follow-up to information submitted to the Special Rapporteurs from individuals, groups, and other stakeholders, on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and violence and discrimination against women, as well as briefing notes and talking points to assist the Special Rapporteurs to participate in key events and media releases;
• assist in preparing country visits of the Special Rapporteurs, most notably, timely preparation of comprehensive country-assessments, designing the programme of the visit with all parties involved, and assist in handling logistics;
• assist in the organization of consultations and other expert meetings to inform the Special Rapporteur’s thematic research;
• ensure that routine correspondence is tracked and responded to as well as maintenance of the Special Rapporteur’s outreach tools, most notably its webpage;
• other tasks as required by her/his supervisors in order to ensure comprehensive and effective support of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur and participate in activities carried out by the Branch and Office as a whole.

The UN Volunteer will also undertake, if circumstances permit it, shorter assignments with other units of the Office (to be further determined) in order to gain a deeper knowledge of international human rights mechanisms.

As part of the pilot programme “Ditch UNfair internship” the volunteers will be asked to contribute to the advocacy component of the project by providing feedback on how to improve OHCHR internship system, share stories and experience.

Qualifications/Requirements

Required degree level:

Bachelor degree or equivalent

Education - Additional Comments:

To qualify for this assignment, applicants must, at the time of application, be enrolled in a graduate school programme (i.e. Master’s degree or equivalent degree, or higher) or in the final academic year of a first- level university degree programme (i.e. Bachelor’s degree or equivalent degree) in the area of law, political science, international relations, social sciences or related field, OR have graduated with a university as defined above AND, if selected, must commence take the assignment within one-year period from the date of graduation.

Required experience:

6 Months

Experience remark:

• 6 months of experience in legal or human rights matters is required, up to 2 years of experience in these areas is desirable.
• Applicants are not required to have professional work experience for this assignment though any relevant academic and/or practical experience, in particular in the area of legal or human rights affairs, would be an advantage.
• Applicants should be computer literate in standard software applications; have a demonstrated keen interest in the work of the United Nations with a personal commitment to the ideals of the Charter, and have the demonstrated ability to successfully interact with individuals of different cultural backgrounds and beliefs - which includes willingness to understand and be tolerant of differing opinions and views.
• English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this assignment, fluency in English OR French is required, knowledge of the other is an asset. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is desirable (i.e. Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).

This UNV assignment is offered in the context of a diversity programme bringing qualified candidates from the developing economies to work in OHCHR Geneva. Candidates from developing economies in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa are encouraged to apply.

Language skills:

• English(Mandatory), Level - Fluent

Area of expertise:

Human rights

Driving license:

No

Competencies values:

Client Orientation, Communication, Professionalism, Working in Teams

Application procedure:

* Not yet registered in the UNV Talent Pool? Please first register your profile at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/signup. Important: After creating your account, complete all sections of your profile and submit it. Then go to ‘My Page’ at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/mypage and click on the ‘Special Calls’ hyperlink. Lastly, select the special call to which you would like to apply.

* Already registered in the UNV Talent Pool? Please first update your profile at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/profile. Then go to ‘My Page’ at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/mypage and click on the ‘Special Calls’ hyperlink to select the special call for to which you would like to apply.

Application deadline: 23-05-2021