HUFS-UPEACE Dual Degree Master Candidate in International Law and Human Rights

 

 

Organization:Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, OHCHR

Location:

OHCHR Regional Office for South-East Asia, Room 601, Block A, 6^thFl., United Nations Building, Rajchadamnern Nok Avenue, Bangkok, 10200, Thailand

Period:July 1, 2010~ December 31, 2010 (6 months)

 

Overview of the Organization:

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) represents the world's commitment to universal ideals of human dignity. It has a unique mandate from the international community to promote and protect all human rights.

The OHCHR Regional Office for Asia-Pacific was established in Bangkok in 2002 in order to strengthen OHCHR's presence and partnerships in the region. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) hosts the Regional Office under a Memorandum of Intent signed with the High Commissioner for Human Rights in February 2001. In the 2006-2007 biennium, the Office was reorganized into a new Regional Office for South-East Asia, covering eleven countries: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Viet Nam.

 

 

Internship Activities:

 

From July 1 to December 31, I have completed internship at Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) regional office for Southeast Asia based in Bangkok, Thailand. During the 6 months internship I had fulfilled following responsibilities:

 

1. Assist in monitoring developments (human rights, politics,conflicts) in the South‐East Asia region, and tofollow up individual cases in line with provisions of the treaty body mechanisms and the special procedures.

2. Assist in preparing and distributing a daily news review every morning to send to HQ in Geneva, which provide information on the human rights situation in each ASEAN country, and individual cases where violations of human rights are reported.

3. Assist in preparing monthly review to give an overview of the human rights situation in assigned countries for inclusion in the office’s monthly report.

4. Assist in updating and maintaining information in the Regional Office Website.

5. Assist in organizing the workshops and seminars.

6. Assist in overseeing maintenance and further development of the office’s information and resource tools and, where necessary, directly update and produce the information and resource tools, including: the website, and tables relating to treaties and special procedures.

7. Contribute to the preparation of internal and external reports on the work of the Regional Office.

8. Attend and take notes in meetings/conferences as requested by the Regional Representative.

 

In regard to those aforementioned responsibilities, interns divide jobs according to the office mandates which are country and thematic mandate. When the office had changes in interns’ constitution, we had meeting to reorganize job division in a way to reflect personal interest. Therefore most of interns could have an opportunity to rotate jobs if all consent.

Accordingly, I monitored human rights conditions in Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Indonesia, Singapore, by collecting information, circulating a press review to stakeholders. Country monitoring was done as the first thing in every morning by clipping news of the region. While I was working, there were historical issues going on in Myanmar and Thailand. In Myanmar Aung San Su Kyi was released a week after the referendum on November 7 which was conducted twenty years after the general election. In Thailand, where I lived, there have been continuous bombing incidents as an aftermath of the May Protest which resulted in a hundred of death during the red shirts demonstration against Thai government. In this regard, I engaged in training program for fact-finding staff in National Human Rights Commission of Thailand, where has a mandate to investigate the May Protest incident.

I assisted the office on the development process of ASEAN Human rights protection system, which has two evolving mechanisms such as ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) and ASEAN Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC). In this regard, I attended the Strategy Planning Workshop of the ASEAN Indigenous People’s Task Force in July 2010, the Regional Dialogue on UN Engagement with the ASEAN Human Rights System, and the Fourth Regional Coordination Meeting on ASEAN and Human Rights Activates both in September 2010. I also engaged with trainings and meetings with the National Human Rights Commission in Southeast Asia.

I had a duty to file up complaints in the internal database according to Special Procedures of UN Human Rights Protection System. As part of my responsibilities, I sometimes needed to meet individual complainants, and once I accompanied a human rights officer to interview an Iranian who had been illegally imprisoned for ten years in Thailand. Later, he became a human rights advocator and visited us gain with a case of someone who is naked and malnourished, has been long detained in a devastating condition in Pataya Police Station. This kind of duties gives me more opportunities to have a deep insight on what UN does for protection of human rights.

Aside from them, I developed webpage of the office when IT consultant absented due to his contract termination. As I have experience in IT as a web designer as well as intern at IT department in Smithsonian Institution, and learned computer programming in University, I could utilize my specialty. This was praised by all staff since there was nobody who knows the field.

 

Lessons from the Internship:

When I asked about internship experience to my colleagues who were working at different UN organizations, many expressed their disappointment for not conducting jobs they expected. In my case, having internship at OHCHR regional office gave me good opportunities to witness how things that I learned are being implemented in reality. International law has long been considered as powerless law and been undermined its value. In the same sense, human rights have not been respected in Korea as much it should have been. In reality, however, UN is working on the base of international law to protect and promote human rights, and it actually works. For instance, the person who was detained in Pataya was sent to hospital right after the complaint was filed. A trafficked women who was sold to brothel by her mother received aids through our office after we connected NGOs who can immediately rescue her.

I was lucky to be at OHCHR as the office did not assign one supervisor to each intern. Therefore I could work with all international staff if I want. In addition, I could participate in many international meetings held in Thailand, although I did note-taking, as a representative of the office since the office does not have enough staff. I fully satisfied with my internship and learned a lot more than I expected. Now I am somewhat confident in explaining what UN does for protection and promotion of human rights and what kind of human rights violations are being committed in Southeast Asia. This is not only because I read most of publications in the office, but also I actually participated in the process of OHCHR’s work. I am sure that the internship experience will be a great asset for developing my career path.