This position is located within the United Nations Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Da'esh/Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (UNITAD), and will be based in Baghdad, Iraq.
UNITAD was established by the Secretary-General pursuant to Security Council resolution 2379 (2017), according to which it is mandated to support domestic efforts to hold ISIL (Da'esh) accountable by collecting, preserving and storing evidence in Iraq of acts that may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide committed by the terrorist group ISIL (Da'esh) in Iraq.
Witness Protection and Support Officer will be responsible for the following duties:
1. Develops and implements internal policies and standard operating procedures to ensure that those witnesses and victims who provide testimony and relevant evidentiary material to the Investigative Team are appropriately protected and supported in accordance with the mandate of the Investigative team, international good practice standards, the relevant legal, and regulatory framework;
2. Acts as the Head of the unit, including organizing and prioritizing workload and supervising and guiding the team consisting of protection, administrative and psychosocial elements. Manages the trust fund for witness protection and explores avenues for fund raising for the trust fund;
3. Manages and coordinates UNITAD protection services – in coordination with the competent national and international authorities where relevant - to ensure appropriate physical safety and security of victims and witnesses interacting with the Investigative Team, including protection program case management and administration;
4. Advises the Investigative Team on international standards of witness protection, researches the political, legal, and cultural factors, prepares comprehensive reports and other documents for use by the Investigative Team as they relate to victim and witness protection documents for use by the Investigative Team;
5. Makes recommendations to the Investigative Team senior management as to the witness protection aspects of the investigative strategy, operational plans and their implementation, and recommends adoption of protection measures in respect of individual witnesses or specific investigations;
6. Conducts and coordinates the production of threat and risk assessments and subsequent recommendations for mitigation measures in respect of individual witnesses and specific investigations; chairs the quarterly meetings of UNITAD’s Witness Threat and Risk Assessment Committee;
7. Establishes, develops and maintains a network of competent national authorities, international organizations and other entities relevant for the provision of protection and support for witnesses and victims interacting with the Investigative team. Supervises the establishment of the competent national and CSO network relevant for the provision of psychosocial support and mental health services for vulnerable witnesses such as children and survivors of conflict-related sexual or gender based violence;
8. Negotiates relevant agreements, arrangements and MoUs with competent national authorities, member states and international organizations, to support the implementation of appropriate protective measures to those witnesses and victims who provide testimony and relevant evidentiary material to the Investigative Team;
9. Manages, coordinates and participates in operations in the field related to victim and witness protection, and the implementation and/or monitoring of mitigating measures;
10. Directs and participates in the collection, collation and analysis of information related to the general security situation in Iraq as it impacts on the security of victims and witnesses interacting with the Investigative Team;
11. Collects and organizes highly confidential information relating to the protection and security of victims and witnesses;
12. As necessary, facilitates the provision of capacity-building trainings for Iraqi judicial and investigative authorities with respect to victim and witness protection;
13. Performs other duties as required.
•Professionalism - Understanding of the roles of the UN and other international agencies in conflict or post conflict environments. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.
•Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
•Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.
Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in law, political science, international relations, social sciences or related field is required. A first-level degree (Bachelors' or equivalent) in the specified fields with two additional years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in criminal law, political affairs, international relations, humanitarian matters, law or related area is required.
Experience in witness support and protection, including determining levels of threat and implementing witness protection schemes, is required.
Experience in a managerial position at an international victim and witness protection and support programme(s), or a national witness protection programme, is required.
Experience in developing international and national networks for implementing protective measures, including developing standards and internal operating procedures, is required.
Experience in negotiating relocation framework agreements and other protection, or support related arrangements, or agreements with member states, international bodies or national witness protection programmes on behalf of the competent judicial or criminal justice system entity is desirable.
Experience working in conflict or post conflict areas is desirable.
Experience in Middle East, especially in witness protection and support related capacity, is required.
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in English is required. Fluency in Arabic is desirable.
Note: "Fluency" equals a rating of 'fluent' in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand) and "Knowledge of" equals a rating of 'confident' in two of the four areas.
Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.
• The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.
• Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.
• This position is temporarily available. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment.
• While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post.
• Subject to the funding source of the position, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station.
• This temporary job opening may be limited to “internal candidates,” who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15.
• Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.
• Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as "retirement." Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.
Aux termes du paragraphe 3 de l’Article 101 de la Charte des Nations Unies, la considération dominante dans le recrutement du personnel doit être la nécessité d’assurer à l’Organisation les services de personnes possédant les plus hautes qualités de travail, de compétence et d’intégrité. Ne seront pas retenues les candidatures des personnes qui ont commis des violations du droit international des droits de l’homme, des violations du droit international humanitaire, des actes d’exploitation, d’atteintes ou de harcèlement sexuels, ou au sujet desquelles il existe des raisons plausibles de croire qu’elles ont été impliquées dans la commission de tels actes. L’expression « exploitation sexuelle » désigne le fait d’abuser ou de tenter d’abuser d’un état de vulnérabilité, d’un rapport de force inégal ou de rapports de confiance à des fins sexuelles, y compris mais non exclusivement en vue d’en tirer un avantage pécuniaire, social ou politique. On entend par « atteinte sexuelle » toute atteinte physique de nature sexuelle commise par la force, sous la contrainte ou à la faveur d’un rapport inégal, ou la menace d’une telle atteinte. Le harcèlement sexuel s'entend de tout comportement déplacé à connotation sexuelle raisonnablement propre ou de nature à choquer ou humilier, lorsqu'il entrave la bonne marche du service, est présenté comme une condition d'emploi ou crée au lieu de travail un climat d'intimidation, d'hostilité ou de vexation, et lorsque ce comportement est assez grave pour justifier le licenciement de son auteur. La candidature de personnes qui ont commis des infractions autres que des infractions mineures au code de la route ne sera pas retenue.
Sera dûment prise en considération l'importance d'un recrutement effectué sur une base géographique aussi large que possible. Aucune restriction ne sera imposée par l'Organisation à l'accès des hommes et des femmes, dans des conditions égales, à toutes les fonctions, dans ses organes principaux et subsidiaires. Le Secrétariat de l'Organisation des Nations Unies est un espace non-fumeurs.
La considération dominante dans l’engagement, la mutation ou la promotion du personnel est la nécessité de s’assurer les services de personnes possédant les plus hautes qualités de travail, de compétence et d’intégrité. En acceptant une offre d’engagement, les membres du personnel sont soumis(es) à l’autorité du Secrétaire général, qui peut leur assigner l’une quelconque des tâches ou l’un quelconque des postes de l’Organisation des Nations Unies, conformément à l’alinéa c) de l’article 1.2 du Statut du personnel. Dans ce contexte, tous les membres du personnel recrutés sur le plan international sont tenus de changer de fonctions périodiquement à l’intérieur d’un même lieu d’affectation ou dans un autre lieu d’affectation, dans les conditions fixées par le Secrétaire général.
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