MENA Rights Group
Location: Geneva, Switzerland. Remote position might be considered, if operating within a time zone close to Geneva.
Starting date: ASAP.
Deadline: 15 January 2023.
About MENA Rights Group
MENA Rights Group is a Geneva-based legal advocacy NGO, focusing on the protection and promotion of fundamental rights and freedoms in the Middle East and North Africa. Adopting a holistic approach, we work at both the individual and structural level. We provide legal counselling to victims of human rights violations through recourse to international law mechanisms. In addition, we assess the human rights situation on the ground and bring key issues to the attention of relevant stakeholders to call for legal and policy reform. We are a small and dynamic group of human rights lawyers sharing a passion for the MENA region.
About the role
The human rights officer’s work is diverse and entails:
- Planning and coordination of MRG’s work for the assigned countries (mostly covering Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and to some lesser extent Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Morocco);
- Documenting cases of abuses in the MENA region, in direct contact with victims, families and lawyers; conduct interviews with sources; review court documents, etc.
- Managing portfolio of cases: keeping abreast of country situation and new emerging cases; keeping abreast of developments relevant to the organisation; submitting new information etc.
- Drafting and submitting communications to international human rights mechanisms or other regional or national bodies when relevant;
- Drafting public reports and reports to UN bodies, and contributing to the drafting of MRG’s annual report;
- Representing MRG during meetings, online events and conferences relating to the assigned countries;
- Developing and maintaining a network of contacts, partners from local and international civil society, grassroots activists and other sources, UN staff, Permanent Missions, etc.;
- Drafting press releases and op-eds responding to requests for comments and interviews from the media.
- Other relevant duties as necessary to the fulfilment of our mission.
Requirements
- Advanced university degree in law or social sciences with a strong international law component, knowledge of international law and human rights law;
- Demonstrated relevant professional experience working on human rights in the MENA region (legal work/advocacy);
- Demonstrated interest and knowledge of the MENA region, including the political and legal context;
- Demonstrated interest in advancing human rights in the MENA and sharing our values and vision;
- Excellent level of written and spoken English; working proficiency in Arabic; command of French an asset;
- Solid analytical and writing skills;
- Familiarity with the use of social media in a professional environment;
- Be able to work in a fast-paced environment, i.e., time management and organisational skills;
- Enjoy working in a small and multicultural team;
- NB: To be based at our offices in Geneva, the candidate must have the right to live and work in Switzerland (i.e., nationals or residency permit holders of Switzerland, countries of the EU/EFTA).
How to apply
What you need to do to apply:
Send your application to jobs-at-menarights.org with the subject line “Human Rights Officer – YOUR NAME”.
The application should be in English and contain, in PDF documents:
- A curriculum vitae;
- A motivation letter in the form of an essay (two pages maximum) explaining your motivation for working with MENA Rights Group, your suitability for the position and why you would be a great addition to our team.
- A writing sample.
The deadline is 15 January 2023.
All applications are treated in confidentiality. We will only get in touch with candidates who have been shortlisted.