Human Rights Officer/Legal Adviser

This position is located in the Group of independent experts on the situation of human rights in Belarus (the Group of independent experts on Belarus) pursuant to Human Rights Council Resolution A/HRC/55/L.24, based in Vienna, Austria. The incumbent will work under the direct supervision of the Coordinator of the Secretariat of the Group of independent experts on Belarus.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Human Rights Officer/Legal Adviser will be responsible for the following duties:

• Advises the Secretariat on matters related to the applicable legal framework and the legal standards applicable to the human rights situation under investigation;
• Conducts analysis and research on various legal matters pertaining to the investigation, and contributes to drafting the investigation plan;
• Suggests legal qualifications of gathered information, advises on the standard of proof and determines responsibilities and, where possible, identifies those responsible;
• Provides advice on different legal issues and assists in drafting legal opinions, memoranda and other briefing documents for the Group of independent experts on Belarus;
• Ensures legal accuracy of all documents, including reports, submissions, press releases etc., prepared by the Group of independent experts on Belarus;
• Identifies trends and patterns of human rights violations and abuses, and violations of international criminal law;
• Drafts the legal framework and analysis of the Group of independent experts on Belarus’ reports and ensures consistency of findings, conclusions and recommendations with the mandate, applicable law and information gathered;
• Conducts information gathering activities under the guidance of the Investigation Team Leader, including interviews and the collection and analysis of open sources material and satellite imagery;
• Ensures the legal analysis and legal qualification of the findings integrate gender perspective, reflecting the gender dimensions and gendered impact of the violations;
• Advises the Coordinator and the Secretariat on the legal findings and discusses the possible recommendations in particular, on accountability measures;
• Performs other duties as required.

Education

• Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in international law, or another discipline related to human rights is required. A first-level university degree with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

• A minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible work experience in human rights, international humanitarian law, international criminal law is required. At least two (2) years of experience in providing legal analysis to human rights investigative bodies or tribunals is required. Working experience in/on the region is desirable.

Languages

• French and English are the working languages of the United Nations. For this position, fluency in English (both oral and written) is required. Fluency in Russian is desirable. Knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage.

Source: https://careers.un.org/jobSearchDescription/233139?language=en