Pre-Departure

I leave in just under 10 days and a whirlwind of activity appears to surround me. Whilst juggling the finishing off of a Constitutional Law exam, the organisation of tickets, flights, visas, funds and bearing in mind that I'm about to jump into the deep end of the Cambodian Justice system with little knowledge..life's spinning by at a million miles an hour.

I leave on November 15, have a night in Bangkok and then arrive in Phnom Penh on Nov 16 where I will spend a few days searching for an apartment, furnishing it, working out what's what in a new country and then starting work with the office of the Chief Prosecutor for the (colloquially known) Khmer Rouge Trials. I will be part of the UNKRT which is the anacronym for the United Nations Khmer Rouge Taskforce.

Having studied international criminal law and found that I've loved it, I wrote and begged and tried every possible avenue to get a job with UNKRT and somehow, I now find myself as their first intern.

After my stint in Cambodia, I will fly to London for a few days with friends and then onto Geneva. There, I will take up my position as a Monash University (Castan Centre) Global Intern. The UN Human Rights Council will be sitting in March/April and I will be joining the Australian Delegation for this period.

So, for now - it's all systems go as I get ready to be out of the country for up to 8 months. Whilst I've had plenty of fun travelling about different regions of the world, these are two new encounters. I can only imagine that what I've seen in Central America, South America, Africa and the Pacific will still leave a hundred surprises awaiting me upon touch down in SE Asia and Europe. Whatsmore, I have only ever worked on the grassroots or research side of humanitarian affairs, chuckling jealously at the white four wheel driven workers in the back blocks of whatever country I'm sweating it out in. To suddenly be on that side of the fence will be a new experience. I'm quite excited about air conditioning right now.

Running this site has been at the request of Monash University for potential applicants to these positions. My advice thus far is as follows:

In applying for a Castan Centre Global Internship:
It appears to me that a great emphasis is placed on being able to show a dedication to Human Rights in selecting candidates. For me, this included a research stint with the Australian Red Cross Humanitarian Law department and a trip to Uganda working with a local NGO on women's rights, domestic violence, succession and refugee displacement issues amongst other things.

In interviews:
My interview veered more towards the discussion side of things. First thing's first - know your resume well. Sounds silly, but it's from here that you'll be asked questions. Be prepared to expand on all your experiences and know what you want to tell your interviewers. Also, I read through Australia's white paper and human rights handbook from the department of foreign affairs in order to understand our nation's position on various issues. This allowed me to greater understand what I was getting myself in for, but also to raise these as points of discussion in my interview. We spoke a lot about the right to development, the ethics of development as well as the pros and cons of grassroots involvement and my experiences in Uganda.

For Cambodia:
Bear in mind the independence you will need to partake in an internship like this. Make sure you're happy to:
- Be living in a developing country
- Research the country yourself (history, do's, don't's, what to eat, what to wear, how to travel, living expenses, availability of atm's, safety issues, location of embassies, location of work, etc. etc.) I recommend browsing thorntree.lonelyplanet.com
- Make all travel arrangements yourself
- Research travel insurance that will cover you properly
- Make accommodation arrangements yourself
- Not have access to ready information about your placement from other interns
- Field constant questions about why it's taken so long for the Khmer Rouge to be brought to justice
- Be ready to be dealing with some of the worst atrocities the world has seen
- And lastly, remember to be happy to throw yourself in the deep end.

I'm sure I'll pick up a few hints and tips later on down the track. In the meantime, it's off to study.
Bridi