David Suurland

Current

• Founder and member of the board at Freedom of Information
• Phd Fellow at Leiden University

Education

• Universiteit Maastricht

Connections

107 connections

Industry

Political Organization

David Suurland’s Summary

Developing,organizing and executing of legal research.
Teaching law to first year students
Editor of academic texts
Political lobbyist for human rights in the Netherlands, EU and UN

David Suurland’s Specialties:

political philosophy
legal philosophy
international humanitarian law
international law
islamic law

David Suurland’s Experience

• Founder and member of the board

  Freedom of Information

  (Political Organization industry)

  August 2009 — Present (4 months)

  Freedom of Information is a NGO based in the netherlands which is aimed at providing the citizens of represive regimes with free access to information. Since the free access to information is the cornerstone of civil participation in politics our goal is to ensure that repressive regimes do not succeed in monopolizing the flow of information. Our current main project is focused on Iran and at subverting the attempts by the iranian regime to monopolize this flow of information by which they hope to silence the voices of dissent in their country.
  
  In order to achieve this goal our work consists of close cooperation with IT experts and software developers from around the world, who specialize in developing software aimed at undermining the efficiency of the IT surveillance systems of said regimes on the one hand, and on political and legal lobby activities aimed at enacting legislation barring western companies to sell surveillance software to repressive regimes on the other.
  
  Thusfar our NGO has succesfully helped pass 6 motions in Dutch parliament and has contributed to the passing of the VOICE act in the US senate.

• Phd Fellow

  Leiden University

  (Educational Institution; Research industry)

  July 2005 — Present (4 years 5 months)

  My research aims to compare the politcal and legal philosophical phenomena of Totalitarianism and Radical Islam. It is expected to result in the publication of a book in 2011. This book will focus on the relationship between the ideological content and modus oparandi of radical islamic movements and the European experience of totalitarian movements. Central to its aim is a critique of the idea that radical Islam is a movement of reaction against western influence in the Islamic world or negative western attitudes towards Islam. Rather, radical Muslims themselves are brutally clear that their ideology is firmly founded on Islamic theology itself and is impervious to western influences. The book will strive to offer an academic discourse against any attempts at appeasement and offers a defense for those politicans and governments which strive to maintain liberal democratic values in multicultural societies which find themselves increasingly under pressure form radical Islamic movements.
  
  In the course of 2010 I will conduct my research for 6-9 months in Herzliyah, israel, at the center for security studies.
  
  In addition to my main book, I am also the editor of a book on terrorism which will be published in 2010. This book offers contributions from renowned international academics, politicians and military personel on the legal, political and strategic dillemas posed to states who are engaged in asymetrical warfare against non-state actors. As such this book will be on the cutting edge of international legal developments in the field of the laws regarding warfare and humanitarian rights. .

Additional Information

David Suurland’s Interests:

Art, history, poetry, documentaries, whiskey, good company, music and writing music

David Suurland’s Contact Settings

Interested In:

• career opportunities
• new ventures
• expertise requests
• getting back in touch