Scholarships & funding

UofG-USYD Collaborative PhD Scholarship - Weaponising Criminal Law: National Security, Dissent, and Constitutional Protections in South Asia

Project details

Recent years have seen governments across South Asia suppressing dissent through the use of colonial era criminal laws such as the laws of sedition and conspiracy. These have also been combined with laws which permit measures such as preventive detention under emergency powers. In such a situation the question arises of how constitutional protections might be used to fight back against such measures. While the use of such 'weaponised' criminal laws and emergency powers are often seen as extraordinary measures, they can instead be seen as a continuation of colonial powers as post-colonial states draw on and reconstitute the resources of colonial era statutes and laws to suppress dissent. As a continuation of imperial logic, these laws sustain a normative argument that privileges state security over individual liberty, embedding authoritarian tendencies within democratic frameworks.

The project would thus explore four inter-related questions: 

• First, how such colonial era laws are being weaponised, and how emergency powers are being used in South Asia, in order to develop a picture of how the law is being used in different states. 
• Second, how national security is understood and how this shapes the interpretation of constitutional protections in post-colonial states. 
• Third, the project would explore the history of criminal laws such as the laws of sedition and conspiracy in the colonial and post-colonial eras, in both South Asian jurisdictions and the UK, to understand how such laws have been interpreted and used over time. 
• Finally, the project would look at the question what it would mean to truly decolonise law and legal thought. The project thus aims to illuminate an important yet neglected dimension of comparative constitutionalism which is how colonial legal inheritances, far from being discarded, have been weaponized in ways that reshape the contours of democracy, rights, and accountability in the Global South.

Supervisory Team

Principal Supervisor: Professor Lindsay Farmer (UofG)

Secondary Supervisor(s): Professor Arlie Loughnan (USYD), Dr Paul Scott (UofG) & Professor Tyrone Kirchengast (USYD)

About the School/Research Unit

This PhD opportunity brings together the expertise of two globally renowned institutions - University of Glasgow's School of Law and the Sydney Law School - offering an unparalleled research environment. Glasgow Law School is a leading UK centre for scholarship in both criminal law and public law providing a supportive environment for postgraduate scholars. The University is also home to the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) which provides a rich interdisciplinary network. Sydney Law School is home to world-leading scholars in criminal law and criminal justice. Students benefit from a vibrant seminar scheme and visitor program and the School hosts two major research hubs: the Sydney Law School Centre for Asian and Pacific Law and the Sydney Institute of Criminology.

The project provides a unique chance to investigate the relationship between criminal law, public law and postcolonial theory across two leading institutions, under the guidance of an excellent supervision team with extensive research networks.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria

• Applicants will have a a First Class Honours degree, or Master's by Research with outstanding results (at least 80%) [or overseas equivalent]
• Applicants must be able to study on a full-time basis only
• Applicants must have a demonstratable interests in the topic area under investigation.
• Applicants must be able to commit to enrolling/registering on PhD programmes at both institutions simultaneously and spend time physically based at each institution during the PhD
• Successful applicants must be physically based at UofG for commencement of the Collaborative PhD.

Please note that all applicants must also meet the entry requirements for the Law, PhD [UofG] and the Doctor of Philosophy (Law) [USYD] 

Number of Scholarships

1

Value

The scholarship is available as a full-time +3 (3 year) PhD programme only. The programme will commence in January 2027. The funding is provided by UofG's College of Social Sciences and includes:

• An annual maintenance grant (stipend) at the UKRI rate
• Fees at the standard home or international rate
• Students can also draw on a Research Training Support Grant, usually up to a maximum of £940 per year
• A one off travel grant of up to £3,000 to facilitate the required travel between Glasgow and Sydney

Additionally, no tuition fees will be charged for the USYD PhD programme.

How to apply

Applicants must apply via the Scholarships Application Portal (please see Scholarships Application Portal - Applicant Guide for more information).The funding opportunity is under 'College of Social Sciences Postgraduate Research Funding > COSS-25-014'), uploading the following documentation:

• UofG-USYD Scholarship - Weaponising Criminal Law application form (in Word format)
• Academic transcripts (All relevant Undergraduate and Master’s level degree transcripts (and translations, if not originally in English) – provisional transcripts are sufficient if you are yet to complete your degree).
• Contact details for two referees (where possible your referees should include an academic familiar with your work (within the last 5 years). Both referees can be academics but you may include a work referee, especially if you have been out of academia for more than 5 years). Please note, a CoSS PGR Funding Reference template will be sent to your referees for completion)*. Note that no member of this project's supervisory team can act as your referee. Please see CoSS PGR Funding Reference request guide for further guidance
• Curriculum Vitae (CV) (academic where applicable)

*Please note that when you enter your referees contact details on the Scholarships Application Portal and send the reference request, your referees are expected to provide their references by the closing date of the Scholarship (below). It is strongly recommended you complete this as soon as possible, as late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Closing Date: 21 April 2026

References from referees are due no later than 28 April 2026

Selection process

Applications will be assessed by the project team. Shortlisted applicants may be requested to attend an Interview.

All scholarship awards are subject to candidates successfully securing admission to a PhD programmes in The University of Glasgow's School of Law and The University of Sydney's Sydney Law School. Successful applicants will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programmes after they are selected for funding.

Contact details

Questions on the project: Professor Lindsay Farmer or Professor Arlie Loughnan

Questions on the Scholarships Application Portal only: College of Social Sciences Graduate School