Human Rights & Political Analyst, EO
The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.
Job Category
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Job Subcategory
Policy
Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)
Main purpose of job:
The British Embassy Bangkok is a large diplomatic mission of around 150 staff delivering a dynamic and rapidly expanding programme of activity in support of the UK’s objectives including on economic and sustainable development, trade, security, open societies, consular services and law enforcement. This is an exciting opportunity to join our diverse team.
This role lead’s delivery of Political Section’s work on Open Societies and Human Rights (OSHR), and supports our monitoring and analysis of the domestic political environment, in turn enabling delivery of our objectives under the Embassy’s Country Business Plan by: driving our OSHR strategy; delivering quality reporting and analysis of the human rights situation and future trajectory; and providing understanding of key political personalities and events.
Roles and responsibilities:
- Open Societies & Human Rights (OSHR) [70%]. Delivery of our local human rights strategy and workplan. Monitoring, reporting on and analysis of the OSHR space in Thailand. Building and maintaining a relationship with key representatives in Government, National Human Rights Commission (NHRCT), courts and other agencies to facilitate timely, targeted engagement. Coordination across the Embassy and with likeminded diplomatic missions, CSOs and NGOs, multilaterals.
- Maintaining a link to colleagues in the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to understand policy development and identify possible opportunities for outreach visits and programme funding. Arranging events and visits which further our OSHR objectives. Attend seminars and meetings to further enhance knowledge. Briefing His Majesty’s Ambassador and Deputy Head of Mission on all OSHR issues. Responding to sensitive and urgent Parliamentary Questions.
- Key thematic areas of responsibility currently include (specific priorities will be regularly reviewed and updated):
- Civic space and civil society
- Human rights defenders
- Fundamental freedoms
- Gender & LGBT+
- Anti-SLAPP; Business & Human Rights
- Universal Periodic Review: reporting and implementation
- Freedom of religion & belief
- Support Senior Political Analyst on domestic political monitoring, reporting and analysis [15%]
- Work with Second Secretary Internal Political on furthering our objectives in the Deep South [5%]
- Line management, corporate, and crisis management [10%]:
- Member of the Political Crisis Team
- Active contribution to the corporate life of the Embassy
Other
In times of peak operation demand, work flexibly within the Section and within the Embassy
All staff will be expected to make a corporate contribution to the smooth running of the British Embassy, either through a committee membership or another voluntary role.
Resources managed (staff and expenditure):
Ad hoc project funds related to open societies and human rights.
Essential qualifications, skills and experience
- Excellent knowledge of the International Human Rights framework.
- Knowledge of Thai politics and parliamentary affairs.
- Strong interpersonal skills and initiative with the ability to work as part of a team.
- Flexible, resilient under pressure and decisive with a proven track record of delivering results to a high standard.
- Proven ability at gathering, summarising, analysing and presenting information clearly and concisely in English.
- Ability to make own decisions and to work with limited supervision.
Language requirements:
Language: English and Thai
English: Excellent command of spoken and written English, equivalent to IELTS 7.5 or above. Offers of employment may be made conditional on a recent IELTS test but this is not required ahead of application / interview.
Thai: Excellent command of spoken and written Thai, equivalent to C1 CEFR level or above. (Political Thai not required).
Desirable qualifications, skills and experience
- A minimum of 2 years’ experience, working on political issues, preferably in a diplomatic mission, government department, think-tank, international organisation, media organisation or NGO.
- An existing network of contacts working in this sector or on related issues.
- Basic knowledge of UK political system.
Required behaviours
- Seeing the Big Picture, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together
Application deadline
- 1 March 2024
Grade
- Executive Officer (EO)
Type of Position
- Full-time, Permanent
Working hours per week
- 36
Region
- Asia Pacific
Country/Territory
- Thailand
Location (City)
- Bangkok
Type of Post
- British Embassy
Number of vacancies
- 1
Salary Currency
- THB
Salary
- THB 72,147
Start Date
- 22 April 2024
Other benefits and conditions of employment
Learning and development opportunities (and any specific training courses to be completed):
The British Embassy Bangkok encourages all staff to develop their capabilities, through both formal training (courses) and informal (job-shadowing, coaching, on-the-job training etc.). The majority of our formal L&D opportunities are drawn from FCDO resources. All staff are encouraged to share their skills and experience with colleagues, through informal training (‘lunch & learn’) or coaching/mentoring. All staff are eligible for 5 L&D days a year.
The job-holder will be expected to attend seminars and events relevant to their foreign and security policy responsibilities, through FCDO training (including International Academy), and supplement this formal learning through on-the-job and mentoring / coaching opportunities.
Working patterns:
This is a full time role - 36 hours/week, Monday to Friday.
We currently operate a hybrid working pattern in which staff are expected to work from the Embassy for at least 60% of their working week, whether they are full-time, part-time or work compressed hours.
The Embassy has a smarter working policy and is committed to offering flexible working patterns balanced with the operational requirements of the role. In crisis/emergency situations you may need to work as required to support the Embassy response, sometimes on a shift pattern, which may result in unsociable hours and/or weekend working.
As an inclusive employer we are happy to discuss alternative working patterns at interview or at the point of any job offer.
Additional information
Please note that your application must be submitted before 23:55 on the day mentioned in the above field “Application deadline”.
Please be aware that the deadline for submitting applications is considered to be the time zone for the country where the vacancy has arisen.
All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the online application form completely including the employment and educational details, experience, professional skills and behaviour based questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the applications and incomplete form in any respect may not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.
Only shortlisted candidates for interview will be contacted. Interviewees will be assessed on the core behaviours/qualifications listed above. Unsuccessful candidates will be notified via the system in due time. Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’. If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.
For inclusivity and diversity, please remove the following personal information when uploading your CV: name, address, email address, age, date of birth, gender, and nationality.
The start date mentioned in the job advert is a tentative start date and the successful candidate will be required to undergo security vetting procedures. Any offer of employment will be subject to the candidate achieving suitable clearances.
To those applicants not short-listed, we extend our appreciation for considering the British Government as a potential employer.
The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.
In terms of peak operation demand, work flexibly within the Section and within the Embassy
All staff will be expected to make a corporate contribution to the smooth running of the British Embassy either through a committee membership or another voluntary role to support the vision and values of the Embassy as outlined below.
The British Embassy Bangkok promotes the following values:
- Expertise - We bring cultural, linguistic, geographic, historical and technical expertise to our work. We continuously invest in ourselves and share expertise for the benefit of the UK internationally.
- Respect - We have respect for each other and the different cultures we come from and work with. We are open, inclusive, fair and courteous and treat others with kindness and compassion.
- Resilience - We are ready to work in tough places or on difficult issues. We look after ourselves, support each other and display solidarity with individuals, teams and organisations.
Please note that it is likely that any non-Thai national who is successful in securing a role within the Embassy will need to leave the country and re-enter with a specific type of visa if currently living in Thailand or will need to apply for a visa before travelling here if currently based outside of Thailand. Whilst the Embassy can support you with this process, the costs involved will need to be met by the candidate.
