Thailand: Legal Research Intern (Disrupting Harm Project)

ECPAT International

Vacancy Notice

Position:Legal Research Intern (Disrupting Harm Project)

Location: Bangkok, Thailand

Reports to: Legal Officer

Duration: Six Months

Starting date: September 2019

Grading: INTERN

OVERALL PURPOSE OF THE INTERNSHIP

The ECPAT International internship programme is designed to provide an opportunity to eligible candidates to contribute to and learn about child protection issues, particularly child’s rights to live free of sexual exploitation of children (SEC). Interns are eligible to participate in the ECPAT International Secretariat activities. Interns are expected to carry out the duties assigned to them under the responsibility of the designated supervisor.

ORGANISATIONAL CONTEXT

ECPAT International is a global network of organisations working together for the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children (SEC) in all its manifestations i.e. exploitation of children in prostitution, online child sexual exploitation, sale and trafficking of children for sexual purposes, sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism and some forms of child, early and forced marriage. The ECPAT Network currently consists of 109 members working as independent organisations or coalitions at national and local levels in 96 countries.

The ECPAT International Secretariat coordinates the global work of the organisation and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. The Secretariat designs and implements global and regional level programmes, and undertakes programming, advocacy and research to facilitate a range of network initiatives.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

ECPAT International recently secured funding for the implementation of the project Disrupting Harm: evidence to understand online child sexual exploitation and abuse (OCSEA), a collaborative project along with Interpol and UNICEF office of Research – Innocenti (Global Kids Online) supported by the Fund to End Violence Against Children. The project will assess the scale, nature and context of this issue in 14 countries across Southern and Eastern Africa and Southeast Asia, starting in early 2019 and ending in early 2021. The three organisations will leverage existing research and rally key partners and multi-sectoral stakeholders to: 1) Establish context by conducting extensive research to map the policy and legal landscapes; 2) Analyse the threat via the collection and analysis of crime data and other types of data; 3) Ensure children’s voices are heard via cross-sectional, nationally-representative household surveys. The research framework and outputs are envisioned as an important step towards in-depth analysis of online child sexual exploitation and abuse, to produce key findings and identify priority areas for interventions. The project will also pilot a new methodology to determine the context, scale and manifestations of these crimes in 14 countries, with recommendations expected to have relevance for a broader audience.

The countries of focus in Southern and Eastern Africa region are: Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Mozambique, South Africa and Namibia. The countries of focus in the Southeast Asian region are: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Within this collaborative partnership, ECPAT is responsible for “contextual research” component of the project. ECPAT will undertake this research in two distinct phases: phase one of the project involves comprehensive exploration of the existing secondary data on legislation and systems addressing OCSEA at country level, and in phase two ECPAT will directly undertake primary research activities to fill gaps in the data that were identified in the first phase. This research will be tailored to the country contexts.

Fourteen national level reports and two regional level reports will be generated as well as data reports for the five major primary research activities. ECPAT’s role in the project includes the consolidation of findings of all three project partners in country and regional level reports.

A project-team is currently being established, including a Project Manager, Research Officers and eight regional researchers for country level research and regional consolidation.

PRIMARY TASKS

· Desk review of the existing data on legislation and systems addressing OCSEA at country level through collecting and analysing national laws, legal procedures, policies and implementation practices related to SEC in the 14 target countries. This includes a research into the current status of OCSEA legislation in the country, general measures of implementation, prohibitions, protection and prevention measures related to online child sexual exploitation and abuse;

· Draft of (parts of) the legal subchapters of the 14 national and two regional reports;

· As requested, review other ECPAT publications and materials to strengthen texts related to legal and research frameworks;

· Assist ECPAT International with translation and proofreading of publications and other documents;

· On an informal and as-needed basis, assist with other ECPAT regional and thematic programmatic tasks or any other tasks as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

· Advanced degree in Law with a focus in international law and/or human rights or equivalent;

· Strong research and writing skills;

· Ability to synthesize large amounts of information into concise formats;

· Knowledge of international legal standards related to child’s rights;

· Fluency in English and excellent English writing skills.

Desirable

· Fluency in Portuguese;

· Previous exposure to child’s rights or other social activities;

· Experience in working with human rights and social development issues specifically as they relate to the rights of children;

· Exposure to child’s rights or other social issues.

INTERNSHIP CONDITIONS

A modest stipend of 15,000 Bath/month (around $460 USD) will be made available to the intern who is not sponsored by other organisations or institutions. All other costs related to the internship, i.e., travel, passport, visa or living costs in Bangkok, are to be borne by the intern or his/her sponsoring institution or organisation.

To apply, please e-mail your CV and cover letter, with your name and the position title in the subject line to vacancy@ecpat.net

For further information on the application process, please visit:

http://www.ecpat.net/employment

Application Deadline: 4 August 2019

ECPAT International is committed to keeping children safe. The selection process reflects our commitment to the safeguarding of children.