The University of Wollongong is backing a thesis written by the estranged partner of former Guantánamo Bay detainee David Hicks.
The PhD thesis by human rights activist Aloysia Brooks has been criticized for suggesting bee stings are more dangerous than terrorist attacks.
But a UOW spokesperson said the candidate provided evidence to support her arguments and conclusions throughout the thesis.
‘’(The thesis) looked in depth at the experiences of four Australian citizens, one of whom was the candidate’s spouse,’’ the spokesman said.
‘’It is not unusual for academics to research areas of close personal interest, or even on occasion to include their own experiences or those of close associates in their research.’’
The spokesman said all views expressed in the 360-page essay were Dr Brooks’. This included claims the federal government has a ‘’pro-torture ideology’’.
‘’Although evidence clearly demonstrates that state terrorism causes many more deaths than non-state terrorism does, terrorist acts perpetrated by the state are given far less attention in the mainstream media,’’ Dr Brooks writes.
‘”More people die in car accidents, from domestic murders and bee stings in Australia than terrorist attacks.
‘’One could hardly imagine a war on bees occurring any time soon, and therefore, it can be concluded, that the counter-terrorism laws have been largely politically driven, rather than as a result of the need for legislation against new criminal acts.’’
Mr Hicks was captured in Afghanistan in 2001, charged with providing material support for terrorism, and spent six years in Guantanamo. He pleaded guilty in a deal which sent him back to Australia, but a US military court later reversed the verdict.
Dr Brooks was supervised at Wollongong by Brian Martin, who gained notoriety after overseeing another thesis which claimed the World Health Organisation was colluding with pharmaceutical companies to spruik vaccines.
