Human Rights Officer

Under Resolution 2677 (2023), the Security Council determined that the situation in South Sudan continues to constitute a threat to international peace and security in the region.

The Council extended the UNMISS mandate until 15 March 2024. It also emphasized that the Mission should continue advancing its three-year strategic vision defined in resolution 2567 (2021) to prevent a return to civil war, build durable peace and support inclusive, accountable governance as well as free, fair and peaceful elections in accordance with the Revitalized Peace Agreement.

Under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, UNMISS is therefore authorized to use all necessary means to implement its mandate which includes:

(a) Protection of civilians
(b) Creating conditions conducive to the delivery of humanitarian assistance
(c) Supporting the Implementation of the Revitalised Agreement and the Peace Process
(d) Monitoring, investigating, and reporting on violations of humanitarian and human rights law

The overall ceiling for uniformed personnel is maintained at 17,000 troops and 2,101 police, including 88 corrections officers.

Please refer to https://unmiss.unmissions.org/mandate for more information.

UNMISS was established in 2011 under the auspices of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO); subsequently, UNMISS mandate has been renewed through resolutions 2057 (2012), 2109 (2013), 2155 (2014), 2187 (2014), 2223 (2015), 2241 (Dec. 2015), 2304 (2016) and 2327 (2016), 2392 (Dec. 2017), 2406 (Mar. 2018), 2459 (Mar. 2019), 2514 (Mar. 2020), 2567 (Mar. 2021), 2625 (Mar. 2022), 2677 (Mar. 2023), 2729 (April 2024).

UN Security Council Resolution 2729 (2024) reiterates “the urgent need to end impunity in South Sudan and to bring to justice all those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights, stressing the importance of transitional justice measures, including those stipulated in the Revitalised Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS), to end impunity and promote accountability, facilitate national reconciliation and healing, and ensure a sustainable peace, as recognized by Chapter V of the R-ARCSS”.

The resolution mandates UNMISS to:
• Monitor, investigate, verify, and report immediately and publicly on abuses and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, including possible war crimes or crimes against humanity.
• Report specifically and publicly on violations and abuses committed against women and children, including sexual and gender-based violence, and accelerate implementation of new mechanisms to monitor, analyse and report on conflict-related sexual violence and abuses against children.
• Monitor, investigate, and report on incidents of hate speech and incitement to violence.
• Work with international, regional, and national mechanisms engaged in monitoring, investigating, prosecuting, and reporting on violations of humanitarian and human rights law.
• In line with the UNMISS mandate, the HRD will continue monitoring, documenting, investigating, and reporting on the human rights situation in South Sudan. In addition to these core tasks, various capacity building and institutional reform programmes, will be implemented to foster national ownership of the human rights agenda and to reinforce the protection of civilians through strengthening accountability. Several HRD initiatives will be undertaken to mobilize national, regional, and international partners’ responses to human rights and accountability concerns through constructive dialogue, advocacy, and technical assistance. These initiatives will contribute to enhancing transitional justice, accountability, and the fight against impunity, as well as widening civic space and maintaining human rights at the core of the protection of civilians’ mandate and peace and political processes.
• The protection and promotion of human rights remain one of the core strategic priorities of the UNMISS mandate, in addition to the protection of civilians. To this end, the Human Rights Division (HRD) contributes to the identification of threats and attacks against civilians, implementation of a mission-wide early warning strategy, including a coordinated approach to monitoring and verifications, and efforts to foster a secure environment for the return of IDPs, including through monitoring and respect for human rights, in strict compliance with Human Rights Due Diligence Policy (HRDDP) (SC2514 (2020).

Under the direct supervision of the Field Office Team Leader or Thematic Team leader, and overall supervision of the Director of the Human Rights Division or his/her designate, the UNV Human Rights Officer will be responsible for implementing the Work Plan of the HRD including assisting in conducting monitoring/fact-finding missions, as well as reporting and advocacy activities in the area of assignment as mandated in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2729 (2024). The incumbent will:
• Contribute to and/or draft communications, briefing notes, talking points, press releases, statements, bullet points, or other products.
• Draft various internal and external reports on the human rights situation in South Sudan covering specific timeframes (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly) or themes (e.g., freedom of expression) based on submissions from colleagues based in the field and the HQ. The candidate may be asked to draft reports during evening hours (i.e., daily) or weekends (i.e., weekly).
• Conduct capacity building activities in the areas of administration of justice and transitional justice which include advising national counterparts, facilitating, and organizing workshops, supporting the national criminal justice system organization, training of national actors and/or monitoring of the court and legal system.
• Facilitate the implementation of the human rights mandate in the designated area of conflict related violations.
• Gather information, analyse, and report on the situation of human rights in relation to the armed conflict, including through close cooperation with field teams, other United Nations actors and the community.
• Support HRD’s analysis by maintaining a proactive situational awareness of human rights and political developments for the purpose of gathering data on hotspots and early warning mapping and support in HRD’s information analysis.
• Identify incidents requiring further monitoring and/or investigation, co-ordinate with field teams regarding follow-ups, and analyse the potential impact of reported incidents on the human rights situation.
• Monitor and follow up on incidents of denial of access by armed groups to locations where human rights monitoring and investigation activities are planned to take place, and coordinate with field teams and the Legal Affairs to identify possible courses of action in response.
• Assist in developing the profiles of alleged perpetrators of human rights violations in close coordination with field teams.
• Conduct fact-finding missions and investigations into abuses/violations of human rights or humanitarian law.
• Establish and maintain contacts with government representatives, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society organizations, UN agencies and other partners operating in the AOR.
• Ensure, coordinate, and supervise the timely entry of accurate and verified human rights cases into an established database; conduct quality control and deliver statistics and trends reports as required.
• Undertake risk assessment within the framework of HRDDP and monitor the implementation of mitigating measures.
• Ensure the integration of gender perspectives, with specific attention to issues related to women and girls, including conflict-related sexual violence, within all assigned human rights activities.
• Represent the UNMISS human rights office at working level meetings, as relevant.
• Perform other related duties as required.