OHCHR in the World: making human rights a reality on the ground

Over the years, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has increased its presence in the field, reaching out more and more and giving a voice to the people who need it the most. OHCHR presences away from Headquarters are a strategic entry point for promoting and protecting human rights at the country level; mainstreaming human rights, that is, integrating a human rights perspective into the work of the United Nations Country Teams; and helping strengthen national institutions and civil society.

There are a number of ways in which OHCHR field presences assist in efforts to make human rights a reality; not only do they monitor the human rights situation in countries, but they also assists in building the capacity of Member States and other duty-bearers to address human rights issues. The following are OHCHR's field presences:

11 Country Officers

In establishing country offices, OHCHR negotiates with the host government a full mandate that includes both human rights protection and promotion. Offices have been established in Angola, Bolivia, Cambodia, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Nepal, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Kosovo (Serbia), Togo, and Uganda.

Activities by country offices include monitoring, public reporting, provision of technical assistance, and the monitoring and development of long-term national capacities to address human rights issues.

UN Peace Missions

OHCHR is the leading authority for human rights, but all UN entities have a role to play in promoting and protecting human rights through and within their operations in the field. In this respect, OHCHR seeks to integrate human rights in all components of UN Peace Missions with four priorities: ensuring justice and accountability in peace processes; preventing and redressing human rights violations; building capacities and strengthening national institutions; and mainstreaming human rights in all UN programmes.

As at December 2007, OHCHR supported –through nearly 400 international human rights officers and national staff-- the 17 human rights components of Peace Missions in Afghanistan, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia/Eritrea, Georgia/Abkhazia, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, Iraq, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, and the UN Office for West Africa (Senegal).

8 Regional Offices

In 2007, OHCHR had eight regional offices covering East Africa (Addis Ababa), Southern Africa (Pretoria), Central America (Panama City), Latin America (Santiago de Chile), South East Asia (Bangkok), the Middle East (Beirut), and the Pacific (Suva). OHCHR has also a Regional Centre for Human Rights and Democracy for Central Africa in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Further regional presences are planned.

Regional offices have a crucial role in promoting and protecting human rights in countries of their region, including by working with regional bodies, such as the African Union.  

Human Rights Advisers

Human Rights Advisers are experts deployed by OHCHR to the field to support UN Country Teams following the request of UN Resident Coordinators. They follow up and analyze the human rights situation in the country in which they serve and advise the UN Resident Coordinator and the UN Country Team as a whole on strategies to build or strengthen nations' capacities and institutions in promoting and protecting human rights. They also engage with national actors (governments and civil society) on how to best promote and implement human rights standards. As of December 2007, OHCHR had Advisers in Ecuador ,  Guyana , Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, Pakistan, Rwanda, Somalia, Sri Lanka and the South Caucasus (Azerbaijan and Georgia);  and national staff in Country Teams in FYR Macedonia, Serbia and Russia.

Rapid Response to Emerging Human Rights Crises

In addition to engaging countries through field presences, OHCHR's Rapid Response Unit also supports the work of OHCHR by swiftly deploy personnel to the field. In view of anticipating and responding to deteriorating human rights situations across the globe, OHCHR is often requested to conduct or support fact-finding missions and commissions of inquiry that investigate serious allegations of human rights abuses. Since its inception in 2006, the Rapid Response Unit has conducted fact finding missions or commissions of inquiry in Timor-Leste, Western Sahara, Liberia, Lebanon, and Beit-Hanoun (Occupied Palestinian Territories).