ABSTRACT
The ever-increasing deployment by the United Nations of human rights field operations in conflict and post-conflict environments reflects the growing acknowledgement of the circular nexus of human rights violations and the causes of armed conflict and other emergency situations. This recognition, and the recent focus on human rights mainstreaming at the field level, have provided the context for the deployment of human rights experts by other intergovernmental organisations besides the UN, as well as by international human rights and humanitarian non-governmental organisations. Although the considerations contained in this chapter are relevant to most of these actors, the primary analytical focus rests on the work of human rights field operations of the UN, and on the core functions and key partnerships that shape their efforts to address the ever-changing challenges that they encounter. The deployment of specifically mandated UN human rights field teams began in 1991.
