Maldives: International consultant- Strengthening Capacity of Prosecutors working with Child Victims and Witnesses of Violence

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Reference Number: TOR/2018/11 International Consultant

Strengthening Capacity of Prosecutors working with Child Victims and Witnesses of Violence

1. Background & Purpose

Background: Maldivian Government has been undergoing a series of reform initiatives introduced by the Government. The Constitution was amended to establish a system of democratic governance. The new Constitution provides for the first time the separation of powers between the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary. However, the transition to democracy has been difficult with the country facing significant challenges in consolidating initial progress.As part of the national efforts towards democratization there has been significant focus on promoting human rights and strengthening the justice sector. As such, increasing prosecution rates in cases of child abuse is an area of high priority for prosecutor general’s office as successful convictions of sexual abuse offenders can provide victims with a sense of empowerment and safety as well as hold perpetrators accountable for their crimes. Furthermore, success by the criminal justice system is also likely to encourage victims and their families to cooperate with prosecutors and view the criminal justice system as a trusted resource.

Decision to prosecute cases of violence against children is a complicated process in Maldives, partly because of the special dynamics surrounding these cases. In most of the reported cases the crimes are committed in private; there are rarely eyewitnesses; and the child’s testimony usually provides most of the information about the crime. At times the qualities of children’s testimony are compromised by developmental limitations in memory, language and the trauma. Furthermore, in most of the cases, the child may have a pre-existing close relationship with the offender, thereby increasing the chance of reluctant to cooperate at the investigation stage and court process. Crime could have drastic effects on victims. The responsibility to support the victims can quite often be forgotten. It is critical that victims are provided with access to an effective criminal justice system that takes into consideration their best interest. Currently, there is limited capacity among the prosecutors in dealing with such challenging cases of violence against children. Hence, the requested consultancy focusses on building the capacity of the prosecutors.

Purpose: The purpose of this consultancy is to provide technical support to the Prosecutor General’s Office to build capacity of prosecutors working with child victims and witnesses of violence.

2. What is the basic project objective to which the consultancy is relatedThe main objective of the consultant is to provide technical support to strengthen the capacity of prosecutors working with victims and witnesses of violence. It is aimed at enhancing the capacity of prosecutors to manage cases of violence against children, and children in conflict with law, during the judicial process. Additionally, to gain the knowledge on the best practices and how those could be incorporated in Maldivian context within the available human and financial resources and to streamline existing Operational procedures and Guidelines.

3. Duty station: The consultant will be based in Male’ Maldives

4. Travel: It is expected that the consultant will visit selected 2 atolls to get an understanding of the current situation and the context.

5. Major tasks to be accomplished; 1. Capacity building of prosecutors; (i) Conduct a capacity needs assessment (ii) draft training module(s) and materials (iii) training of prosecutors 2. Strengthen Operational Procedures, and Guidelines

Task Details

Deliverables

o qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Following qualifications and /or specializations are necessary to be selected to the consultancy.

Academic qualifications:

Knowledge, skills and experience:

Personal competencies:

Language competencies:

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

Deadline for application is 23rd May 2018, 12:00 pm (west asia standard time)

Application with (i) updated CV, (ii) Updated P11 Form (download and fill P11 form from link below)

https://www.unicef.org/videoaudio/PDFs/P11.doc

UNICEF may also ask for submission of relevant work.

Application Link:

Remarks:

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization. To apply, click on the following link http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=513035