Human Rights Intern

Organizational Context

The Human Rights Intern will be part of the Human Rights Treaties Branch (HRTB) within the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva. The HRTB supports the activities of human rights treaty bodies, which are independent expert committees monitoring the implementation of core international human rights treaties by State parties.

Job Purpose

This internship aims to build a pool of qualified candidates to support the Human Rights Treaties Branch (HRTB) in its mission. The intern will contribute to the monitoring of international human rights treaties by assisting treaty bodies in their functions, which include reviewing State party reports, handling individual complaints, conducting country inquiries, and developing general comments. The role also supports capacity-building activities and the work of funds dedicated to victims of torture and contemporary forms of slavery, all under the umbrella of OHCHR in Geneva.

Responsibilities

The intern will provide crucial support to the Human Rights Treaties Branch (HRTB) and its associated mechanisms. Key duties include preparing country and legal analyses, drafting background papers for human rights treaty bodies concerning state party reporting and individual complaints procedures. The intern will also conduct research and draft reports on treaty body jurisprudence, assist in managing individual and inter-state communications, and support preparations for country visits. Additional responsibilities involve taking meeting notes, providing administrative support for documentation, contributing to outreach and information tasks, and assisting with the Universal Human Rights Index and treaty body databases.

Work Experience

While specific years of experience are not mandated, candidates should possess relevant coursework or experience in areas such as business administration, management, strategic communications, project management, public administration, law, legal administration, or human resources management. A broad range of educational, project, volunteering, or research backgrounds are considered.

Skills

Collaborative, reliable, communicative, ability to interact with diverse cultural backgrounds, willingness to understand differing opinions, fluency in English or French (knowledge of the other is an asset), knowledge of another UN official language is advantageous.

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