Deadline: June 18,2018
Media Legal Defence Initiative (MLDI) invites proposals for a Legal Research Opportunity to map digital rights and online freedom of expression litigation in East, West, and Southern Africa. MLDI is a charity, based in the United Kingdom, that provides legal help to journalists, bloggers and independent media across the world.
MLDI has commenced a project to build litigation capacity for the defence and promotion of journalists’ right online freedom expression and digital rights in East, West, and Southern Africa. As part of the project, MLDI seeks to commission a research report that maps laws that pose a challenge to digital rights, the outcome or status of related litigation, opportunities for further litigation, and legal and civil society actors in this field. The report will be used to inform the planning and implementation of the project, constitute a baseline assessment of the field, and will be published as a publicly available resource.
Research report
The research report will identify legislation, cases, policies and legal/civil society actors relevant to digital rights and strategic litigation in each of the project’s sub-regions. Drawing on desktop research, judgements (or legal submissions where judgments are not yet available), and interviews with civil society, it should include the following sections for each country:
- Section 1: Legislative and Policy Environment
- Section 2: Digital Rights Litigation
- Section 3: Legal and Civil Society Actors
- Section 4: Lessons and Opportunities
- Summary table
Eligibility
MLDI is looking for a research consultant who meets the following criteria:
- A law degree and at least three years’ relevant experience in socio-legal research and/or legal practice;
- demonstrated knowledge of international and comparative law on the right to freedom of expression, digital rights, and Internet freedom;
- familiarity with media law in East, West and Southern Africa;
- availability to work on the report in June, July and August 2018;
- experience in carrying out research for evaluation purposes would be advantageous.
Requirements
MLDI is open to proposals that include each of the above requirements but use an alternative structure to present its findings.
- MLDI requires that the research report covers countries in East, West, and Southern Africa. While the number countries from each region and choice of countries is negotiable, there should be a clear rationale for each country selected. The report should cover approximately 15 countries in total, including, but not limited to, the following:
- East Africa: Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda
- Southern Africa: Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
- West Africa: Benin, Cameroon, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Togo
Application
To apply for this consultancy, please submit the following documents to Michael Moss: [email protected]
- A cover letter;
- your curriculum vitae;
- a brief research outline, including a timeline; and
- a quotation in GBP (£).
Requests for further information can be submitted to Michael Moss as well.
For more information, visit MLDI Legal Research Opportunity.
