‘Freedom from Violence in Africa’ is a research programme that focusses on violence and securing the right to life in Africa. It is a multi-disciplinary programme that engages in the African context with the aspiration of the UN Sustainable Goal 16 to establish ‘peaceful societies.’
The Freedom from Violence in Africa Unit is located at the Faculty of Law. Some of the core research will entail analysing the legal dimension of issues such as the use of force by law enforcement officials; the State’s duty to protect and investigate (and how this applies in the context of anti-terrorism measures and times of armed conflict). The research can also be centred on the more practical dimensions of these fields, such as the use of non-lethal weapons or the use of new technologies for training, monitoring and accountability.
The programme will also be enriched by insights from other disciplines such as criminology, sociology, political science, public health and history with respect to better understanding the incidence of violence in Africa. Candidates from these backgrounds are welcome to apply.
For more details about the potential topics and the study leaders of this programme, please follow this link: http://www.icla.up.ac.za/news-events/news/323-university-of-pretoria-opportunity-for-doctoral-studies-on-aspects-of-freedom-from-violence-in-africa.
If you are interested in pursuing doctoral studies on one of the topics under this programme, please contact Dr Thomas Probert (thomas.probert@up.ac.za). In your application, you are encouraged to explain both the field and the potential subject of your intended research. This will be assessed in relation to the Freedom from Violence in Africa’s research priorities.