Human Rights Associate – Women, Peace & Security

Mexico continues to face serious human rights challenges related to disappearances, violence, insecurity, and impunity, with one of the highest rates of disappearances in the world.

Women searching for disappeared relatives (“mujeres buscadoras”) have become central actors in efforts to advance truth, justice, and accountability. Across the country, women-led collectives play a critical role in locating clandestine graves, promoting searches, documenting cases, and advocating for effective investigations, prevention, protection and institutional responses. At the same time, they frequently face insecurity, psychosocial impacts, and barriers to meaningful participation in search and criminal investigation processes.

Within this context, OHCHR-Mexico works on monitoring, technical cooperation, advocacy, and engagement related to disappearances, accountability, victims’ rights, protection, and access to justice, with a particular focus on women, peace and security. The Office accompanies and engages with women-led search collectives, judicial authorities, prosecutors’ offices, search commissions, public human rights institutions, and civil society organizations to strengthen institutional responses and promote participation, protection, and gender-sensitive approaches in line with international human rights standards.

The overall objective of this UN Volunteer assignment is to support OHCHR’s work on disappearances, accountability, and access to justice through research, monitoring, analysis, and technical cooperation. The assignment will provide exposure to OHCHR’s work on women, peace and security, victims’ participation, and the application of international human rights standards in search and criminal investigation processes.

Under the direct supervision of the Coordinator of the Justice and Security Unit, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:
• Support monitoring and analysis related to disappearances, victims’ rights, and access to justice, with particular attention to the participation and protection of women searchers and women-led collectives.
• Conduct legal and policy research related to international human rights standards applica-ble to search processes, criminal investigations, victims’ participation, gender, and ac-countability.
• Assist in drafting background notes, analytical documents, talking points, and summaries related to disappearances, women, peace and security, and justice sector issues.
• Support engagement and dialogue with search commissions, prosecutors’ offices, judicial authorities, women-led search collectives, civil society organizations, and public human rights institutions.
• Monitor recommendations, reports, and jurisprudence from UN and regional human rights mechanisms related to disappearances, women’s rights, accountability, and access to justice.
• Support the organization of workshops, consultations, technical meetings, and activities aimed at strengthening institutional capacities and promoting meaningful participation of victims and women searchers in search and investigation processes.

During the first month of the assignment, the UN Volunteer will work closely with his/her direct supervisor to finalize an agreed-upon work plan. The work plan should outline key objectives and activities and include regular check ins with the supervisor to review progress and receive performance feedback.