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January 22 - 28, 2021Scholars at Risk monitors reports of threats to academic freedom and higher education communities worldwide, including media articles, blogs, opinion pieces and other announcements. Unless otherwise indicated (such as in articles written by SAR), the language and views contained in the search results reflect those of the originating author and/or publication and do not necessarily represent the views of Scholars at Risk or its members, affiliates, board or staff. An archive of the Media Review is available on our website. |
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UNITED STATES: Biden promises truth after Trump’s lies. How to hold leaders accountable for their words.
Robert Quinn, NBC THINK, 1/27
Scholars at Risk founding Executive Director Robert Quinn writes on the importance of demanding truth-telling from our leaders to maintain a healthy democracy. In the wake of a Trump presidency, and the rampant spread of misinformation, Mr. Quinn calls on each of us to protect the truth by countering lies when confronted by them.
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UNITED KINGDOM: A mercantilist approach to higher education post-Brexit
Anne Corbett, University World News, 1/26
An overview of the impact of Brexit on the higher education sector in the UK, including an end to freedom of movement.
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RUSSIA: Russian education clampdown ‘threatens international links’
David Matthews, Times Higher Education, 1/25
New amendments to Russia’s education law, intended to weed out “negative foreign influence” in higher education, is alarming to the country’s academics. Many fear that the change will prevent international collaboration, decrease public lectures and idea-sharing, and place the humanities under “ideological control.”
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VENEZUELA: List of priority careers of the regime is exclusive and violates academic freedom
The Human Rights Observatory of the University of Los Andes, 1/25
The minister of the de facto regime for University Education, César Trómpiz, presented a plan to the country's private universities to resize the university entrance system according to only 145 careers relating to a "productive economy, according to the training needs of the nation." None of the 145 specified careers represent the arts, humanities, or political sciences.
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UNITED STATES / CHINA: MIT funds defence of scientist accused of undisclosed China ties
Paul Basken, Times Higher Education, 1/25
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology will be funding the legal defense of Gang Chen, a professor of nanoengineering at the university. Professor Chen, a U.S. citizen born in China, was recently arrested on charges of failing to disclose various partnerships and funding from China and Chinese entities.
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FRANCE: France’s president says he understands university students’ misery during the coronavirus pandemic. Students aren’t sure.
Rick Noack, The Washington Post, 1/24
University students in France have demanded and pleaded with government officials to resume in-person learning through open letters and protests. Confined to small dorm rooms and lacking income from on-campus employment, many students seek psychological support and student food banks to sustain themselves.
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THE PHILIPPINES: Ban on military forces entering campuses rescinded
Rappler via University World News, 1/23
University of the Philippines (UP) President Danilo Concepcion responded to Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana after the recent unilateral abrogation of the UP’s agreement with the Department of National Defense. In the letter, President Concepcion rejects “any form or semblance of militarization” on UP campuses, saying it will have a “chilling effect deleterious to academic freedom.””
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UNITED STATES: What Zoom Does to Campus Conflicts Over Israel and Free Speech
John Leland, The New York Times, 1/22
Amid the pandemic, students move conversations and debates regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict online, over Zoom, and online webinars.
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THAILAND / SINGAPORE: Academic calls for press boycott over cancellation of Thai book
Joyce Lau, Times Higher Education, 1/22
An academic has urged researchers to avoid making submissions to the National University of Singapore Press after it cancelled his contract to publish a book that was critical of the Thai monarchy.
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TURKEY: Turkey and university autonomy: criticism rises as government appoints new rector
European University Association, 1/22
European University Association expresses solidarity with the Turkish higher education community after President Erdoğan’s recent politically motivated appointments of university rectors.
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RUSSIA: Russian universities urged students not to attend a rally for Navalny
Anastasia Golubeva, Oksana Chizh, BBC News, 1/21
After Alexei Navalny’s recent arrest, Russian universities reportedly told students via official communications that they could face administrative liability or expulsion if they attended rallies in support of the opposition politician. Students from three Russian universities confirmed that universities hold talks with students to prevent them from attending such rallies.
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UNITED STATES: ‘I did everything right.’ Despite following the rules, these students got deported
Ava Sasani, The Boston Globe, 1/18
Despite possessing student visas, several Iranian students arriving in the United States for higher education learning opportunities have been detained and deported within 24-hours of their arrival. Border Protection officers have used expedited removal, or ER, to deport Iranian students because they are “dangerous or a threat to stay permanently.”
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