Associate Human Rights Specialist

Details

Mission and objectives

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is the lead UN entity on human rights. In 1993, the General Assembly entrusted both the High Commissioner for Human Rights and OHCHR with a unique mandate to promote and protect all human rights for all people. Over the course of subsequent decades, with investment by Member States, OHCHR has developed unique competencies for the protection and advance of human rights; competencies that bridge the humanitarian, peace and development sectors. OHCHR provides technical expertise and capacity-development, to support the implementa-tion of international human rights standards on the ground. It assists governments, which bear primary responsibility for the protection of human rights, to fulfil their obligations, supports individuals to claim their rights and speaks out objectively on human rights viola-tions. OHCHR has built global credibility in being a principled advocate for international human rights standards. It represents the leading, authoritative voice on legally binding norms en-shrined in international human rights treaties including in situations of conflict and insecuri-ty. OHCHR is uniquely placed in working closely with Governments, the civil society, the UN family and other stakeholders to advance the human rights agenda. Our strength lies in our unique capability to monitor, critically analyse and report on human rights abuses/violations.

Context

The Regional Office for Central Asia (ROCA), based in Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan), covers the Central Asia region through limited national presences in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajiki-stan, and Turkmenistan (from February 2021). ROCA works to: • increase respect for rule of law • ensure accountability for HR violations • enhance and protect civic space and participation, including of women, youth and people with disabilities • combat discrimination and assist with the development of anti-discrimination legis-lation • foster compliance of legislation, policies and state practices with International Hu-man Rights Law • support the strengthening of National Human Rights Institutions • enable interactions with UN Human Rights Mechanisms • deliver Human Rights Education • advocate for further ratifications of Human Rights instruments and provide dedicated support to the five Resident Coordinators and UN Country Teams in the region, mainstreaming Human Rights in all the work of the UN System and overall in the development agenda

Task description

Within the framework of the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and under the direct supervision of National Programme Officer in Kyrgyzstan and the overall guidance of the OHCHR Regional Representative for Central Asia, the UNV volunteer will undertake the following tasks: • Supports the Regional Office in initiating a programme aimed at supporting the Central Asian governments (namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) in the use of human rights-based approaches (HRBA) in the resocialisation and reintegration of returnees from Syria and Iraq. • Assists interested national partners in Central Asia in organising and implementing ca-pacity building activities in HRBA • Supports in building the capacity of national human rights institutions (ombudsman offices) and civil society organisations in the effective monitoring of the human rights situation • Gather international best practices and experiences on reintegration and resocialisation based on HRBA, with a focus on children and women • Liaises with government, NGOs, civil society organizations, UN agencies and other partners. • Prepares materials or supervises preparation of various types of materials (including press kits, press releases, articles, speeches, web content, fact sheets, booklets, brochures, newsletters, audio-visual materials, radio programmes, etc.). • Performs other duties as required. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to: • Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities; • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible. Results/Expected Outputs • Effectively implement the plans and activities of the Regional Office aimed at supporting the Central Asian governments in the reintegration and resocialisation of returnees • Actively participate in the promotion of human rights based approaches • Demonstrate effective engagement with colleagues and other stakeholders within and out-side the country • Support capacity building of national human rights institutions and civil society organizations to implement effective human rights monitoring based on promising international practices. • The development of capacity through coaching, mentoring and formal on-the-job training, when working with (including supervising) national staff or (non-) governmental counter-parts, including Implementing Partners (IPs); • Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment • A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for peace and development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed