As part of a Dutch NWO funded project titled “Invisible children: a rights-based approach to development for children living in unrecognized states”, the Faculty of Law of Maastricht University  (The Netherlands) is looking to hire two PhD candidates to study the development rights of children living in Somaliland.

One of these two candidates will engage in legal doctrinal research and therefore requires a Law degree. The other candidate will engage in qualitative research to discover norms related to development rights of children, and therefore requires a relevant degree in social sciences.
 

JOB DESCRIPTION

1.    The project
Title: Invisible children: a rights-based approach to development for children living in unrecognized states

Although the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are supposed to apply to all children equally, one group of children have remained largely invisible to the international community, namely: children living in unrecognized states. Since the goal of the SDGs is to provide access to justice for all and leave no one behind, and to build effective and inclusive institutions at all levels, we are studying the following  main question: (How) can development rights of children living in unrecognized states be better realized?

From research in law and development, we know that for laws (including development rights) to have an impact on society, they must first be embedded in local norms. However, researchers have not yet found a way to systematically acquire and process the relationship between children’s development rights and the relevant local norms. Furthermore, there is no research currently available on what it means to say that children living in unrecognized states have development rights.

To remedy this gap, the envisaged research project will apply a three-pronged approach to answer our main question by:

1)     Conceptualizing what development rights actually entail for children living in unrecognized states from an international law perspective;

2)     Developing a theoretical framework and methodology to study the different norms related to the protection/violation of children’s development rights in different socio-legal contexts;

3)     Formulating - through field research and literature study – a deeper understanding of legal and non-legal normative mechanisms that protect/violate development rights of children living in four unrecognized states: Abkhazia, Palestine, the SADR and Somaliland.

2.    The job opening

We are looking to hire two PhD candidates who will study the legal and non-legal mechanisms that protect and/or violate children’s development rights in Somaliland.

The first PhD candidate will be tasked to focus mainly on the legal conditions of children’s development rights for children living in Somaliland. This includes studying the written law of the “state” as well as of other relevant legal orders that produce law. It may also include a reflection on the position of international law in Somaliland.

The second PhD candidate will be tasked to focus on finding social norms related to development rights of children living in Somaliland. This includes finding, through qualitative empirical research, who decides over development rights of children in Somaliland (including parents, teachers, politicians, as well as children themselves).

The PhD candidates once appointed will become part of a larger research group working on this project. They will be expected to develop an independent research project within the larger project, with the support of their supervisors. After three years they will be expected to have completed an academic PhD thesis, upon which they will receive a doctoral degree from Maastricht University.

Please note: both PhDs will be employed by the Human Rights Centre Somaliland (HRC). They will be expected to live in Somaliland at least most of the time, to work in the office of HRC, and to travel to Maastricht three times, for two research stays as well as for defending their PhD thesis.

Supervision team:
Supervisor:  Prof. Fons Coomans, UNESCO chair in Human Rights and Peace, Faculty of Law, Maastricht University  
Co-supervisor: Marieke Hopman, Assistant Professor Children’s Rights, Faculty of Law, Maastricht University.
 

PhD 1 (legal doctrinal research):

• Master degree in human rights law, international law, or another relevant area of law;
• Passion for academic research, and for human rights/children’s rights;
• Excellent command of English, in writing, reading and speaking, including a high level of academic English;
• Command of Somali is essential ;
• Command of Arabic is preferred;
• The ability to conduct original research independently as well as working in a team;
• Academic skills such as academic writing, academic referencing, ability to study academic literature
• The PhD candidate must live and work in Somaliland, and spend two short periods in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

PhD 2 (qualitative research):

• Master degree in anthropology, sociology, or another relevant area of the social sciences;
• Affinity with, knowledge of, and at least some experience with qualitative research methods
• Excellent command of English, in writing, reading and speaking, including a high level of academic English;
• Excellent command of Somali and Arabic;
• The ability to conduct original research independently as well as working in a team;
• Academic skills such as academic writing, academic referencing, ability to study academic literature
• The PhD candidate must live and work in Somaliland, and spend two short periods in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

Fixed-term contract: 3 years.

We offer a dynamic and challenging job in the field of international law and children’s rights.

Education: You will receive an initial training at the start of the project. In addition, your supervisors will guide you through the PhD process by providing you with regular feedback, and holding monthly meetings.

Contract: We offer a 3-year full-time appointment. The first year will be a probation period, after a positive assessment the position will be extended with another 2 years.

Salary: Remuneration will be according to standard salary levels in Somaliland.

Location: You have to be willing to spend two short periods (2-3 months) in Maastricht, the Netherlands, during your research. Costs for travelling and accommodation will be compensated by Maastricht University / HRC Somaliland. You will be provided with shared office space and a PC at the office of HRC Somaliland and at Maastricht University.

Starting date: Ideally July 2020, depending on the development of the Covid-19 situation.

Human Rights Centre Somaliland

Human Rights Centre Somaliland

The Human Rights Centre (HRC) is a non-profit organization established in January 2013 with the aim of contributing to the protection and promotion of human rights in Somaliland. The HRC was founded by lawyers who are inspired by the Bill of Rights in the Somaliland Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It is registered with the Somaliland government as a non-profit-making and non-governmental organization. HRC was formed to cover the need for documentation and advocacy on human rights to help maintain the gains made by Somaliland’s nascent democracy. The central policy of Human Rights Centre is creating and fostering a culture of voluntary human rights activism where committed human rights defenders with passion contribute to the protection, promotion and realization of human rights.

Our Values

We uphold the values of honesty, justice, and integrity for all. We aim to work with transparency and accountability, commitment and discipline. We encourage creative participation, understanding the need for sustainability and respect for all. We strive for impartiality and independence while placing great value on confidentiality. We also appreciate the importance of volunteering which forms the foundations of our organization.

Areas of Operation
The HRC helps and works for the people of Somaliland. It focuses on vulnerable people, women, the poor, minority clans and victims of human rights abuses. The HRC directs most of its attention to abuses committed by the state. The areas HRC works on include, but are not limited to, police brutality, freedom of media and expression, sexual and gender based violence, illegal detentions, the death penalty, and freedom of assembly.