Banjul, 20 November 2017
In the context of its ‘Mainstreaming Transitional Justice into the work of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR)’ project, supported by the John T. and Catherine MacArthur Foundation, IHRDA is seeking to recruit a legal intern to join its team for a period of 3 months, from January to March 2018. The intern will be responsible for supporting the communications department on the expansion of the IHRDA case-law analyser to include cases and search methods for easily locating decisions by African human rights mechanisms and courts pertaining to violations arising from transitional justice contexts, which are typically characterized by serious and widespread, or gross human rights violations that have taken place in situations of armed conflict, political crisis or authoritarian regimes in Africa; all of which are similarly characterized by widespread violations and impunity. This activity falls within the project’s objective to encourage human rights practitioners to use the ACHPR as a viable option for the adjudication of transitional justice related violations. Enhancing the case-law analyser to include transitional justice related terms and cases will facilitate litigants’ efforts in identifying thematic related precedents, thus contributing to their overall effectiveness as advocates in the area.
The African Human Rights Case Law Analyser (CLA) is online database of jurisprudence on the African human rights system published in 2010 by IHRDA. It is a free, multilingual online resource and contains human rights decisions from six African regional and sub-regional treaty bodies, available at http://caselaw.ihrda.org/. It is known to be the first reference resource for jurisprudence to actors and stakeholders in the African human rights system.
IHRDA is a pan-African non-governmental organization based in Banjul (The Gambia), and seeks to promote the use and effectiveness of the African human rights system. IHRDA was created in 1998 and has Observer Status before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, which are both African Union organs.
The ideal candidate will be a degree holder in law preferably from the Africa region who fulfills the following:
- Familiarity with international law, in particular, African human rights protection laws/systems;
- Knowledge of, or Interest in, transitional justice issues in Africa;
- Good research and writing skills;
- Bilingual (French-English) or fluent in one, with proficiency in the other language;
- Willingness to learn and work in a team; and
- Willingness to move to Banjul, The Gambia for the entire duration of the internship
The internship is for 3 months starting in January 2018. IHRDA will cover the return airfare to and from Banjul, and a modest stipend for living expenses during the period.
To apply, please submit your motivation letter no more than 2 A4 pages long, curriculum vitae and academic records by 7 December 2017 to ihrda@ihrda.org and pchabane@ihrda.org.
