Thailand: Human Rights Defenders (HRD) Programme Associate

Employment Duration Starting from 1 March 2016

1-year contract with possibility of renewal (subject to a three-month probationary period at the beginning of contract)

Salary & Benefits

· USD 22,800 per annum (USD 1,900 per month + 13^th month)

· Health, Dental and Accidental Insurance

Closing Date 19 February 2016

Interview Dates Will be communicated after shortlisting

Duties and Responsibilities

The Human Rights Defenders (HRD) Programme, advocates and campaigns for the protection of HRDs in Asia, provides support to HRDs at risk, including emergency support and trial observation, facilitates cooperation and solidarity among HRDs in Asia, and conducts trainings to build capacity of Asian HRDs. The HRD Department encourages and provides assistance to national networks of HRDs with the view to build a stronger defense of human rights at national level, which are linked to the regional HRD network to enhance the impact of advocacy and campaigns in support of HRDs in Asia.

Under the overall guidance of the HRD Programme Manager, the HRD Programme Associate will assist the HRD Programme Manager and Programme Officer in overseeing the implementation of Organisational Strategic Action Plan, in particular HRD related programme/projects. Specifically, the HRD Programme Associate shall:

1. Programme Management
a. Attend regular programme team meetings, and prepare minutes, if required;

b. Coordinate with other programmes on organisational activities;

c. Supervise the work of HRD Programme Interns and Volunteers as applicable; and d. Represent FORUM-ASIA in related meetings and forums on HRDs in consultation with the HRD Programme Manager and Officer. 2. Planning and budgeting
a. Assist the HRD Programme Manager and Officer in developing programme planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; and b. Draft programme related concept notes and proposals as required.

3. Programme Implementation
a. Assist in the implementation of the HRD Protection Plan;
b. Maintain the human rights defenders database and Asian Human Rights Defenders Portal;
c. Assist in drafting of a regular report on human rights defenders in Asia;
d. Monitor regularly and respond to the situation of HRDs in Asia, with special attention to HRDs who are at an increased risk of persecution such as HRDs working on economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights and HRDs who are supporting victims and communities affected by human rights violations committed by state and non-state actors; and
e. Organise forums, trainings, meetings in cooperation with other programmes concerned; and f. Support Programme staff on broader programme initiatives, including thematic research and preparation of programme materials.

4. Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting

a. Assist in the overall monitoring and evaluation of organisational plans and budget according to the Annual Work-Plan and Budget;

b. Participate in team evaluations and follow-ups, as well as self-evaluations;

c. Assist the HRD Programme Manager and Officer in preparing periodic progress reports: monthly, quarterly, half yearly and annually, as required, in a results-based management framework; and d. Produce mission reports, including finance clearance after each mission.

5. Other Tasks
a. Implement other relevant tasks and activities as assigned by the HRD Programme Manager.

Basic Qualifications and Selection Criteria

Education:

Bachelors degree or higher in the field of human rights or a related subject such as politics, social sciences, international relations, international law, development studies or Asia studies.

Competence:

1. Mature personality; ability to work in a multicultural and demanding working environment with cross-programme coordination;
2. Excellent programme/ project management skills;
3. Self-motivated, positive attitude, strategic thinking and multi-tasking ability;
4. Ability to work under pressure and manage team deadlines;
5. Good team player;

Experience:

1. Minimum two years work experience in the field of human rights—preferably both national and regional/international NGOs in the field of human rights;
2. In-depth understanding of the overall socio-political situation as well as human rights situation in Asia, particularly the challenges faced by HRDs/WHRDs;
3. Experience in human rights research especially dealing with international human rights law and international humanitarian law, drafting short briefings and press statements;
4. Good knowledge in terms of context, operation, contributions and limitations in human rights discourse;
5. Preferably, good understanding of the history and work of FORUM-ASIA;

Skills:

1. Excellent interpersonal and public presentation skills both in oral and in written English and preferably an Asian language;
2. Excellent communication and research skills and the ability to rapidly analyse and integrate diverse information from varied sources;
3. Strong advocacy skills with various stakeholders such as government officials, diplomats, NGOs, NHRIs, media and other relevant institutions and civil society organisation;
4. Good report-writing ability in organisational strategising and planning using Result Based Management (RBM) or Logical Framework Analysis (LFA) tools;
5. Strong technical aptitude and expertise with MS Office tools;

Application Procedure

Interested applicants are requested to fill in the Job Application Form and return the form by email together with a self-introduction letter, two recommendation letters, preferably from FORUM-ASIA members/partners and a sample of writing to:

applications@forum-asia.org before 19 February 2016

You can get contact details of FORUM-ASIA’s member organisations at www.forum-asia.org. Only shortlisted candidates will be responded to. The interview will be conducted by Skype on dates communicated to the shortlisted candidates. A written test may be required after the interview.