WHAT PRICE ACADEMIC FREEDOM

Section 16 of the South African Constitution states :

16. Freedom of expression

1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression, which includes ­

1. freedom of the press and other media;
2. freedom to receive or impart information or ideas;
3. freedom of artistic creativity; and
4. academic freedom and freedom of scientific research.

2. The right in subsection (1) does not extend to ­

1. propaganda for war;
2. incitement of imminent violence; or
3. advocacy of hatred that is based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion, and that constitutes incitement to cause harm.

16.1.(2),(3),(4) all relate to academic practitioners in the pursuit of knowledge generation, knowledge dissemination, and knowledge utilisation.

So, its been interesting that a large university (though some question this label this week) has used disciplinary action to suppress two of its academics who were commissioned by the Faculty of Science and Agriculture to compile a document on academic freedom for presentation to the Senate of the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). All information alleges that the Vice-Chancellor, one, Prof Malegapuru Makgoba, refused to table the document in Senate and that the academics questioned this. Makgoba set-up a mediation process and then set disciplinary action against the academics - who it might be argued were just doing what the Dean and Faculty had legally instructed them to do in terms of the functions of Faculty. Some significant legal cost was predicted in these disciplinary acts, (although the one academic backed-down and the other resigned) one wonders if there is a budget deficit for such things given these are unbudgetted items for a defined budget organisation.

Anyway, the uproar around things has raged for a month or more and the NTESU (National) has done a number of things to attempt to highlight the academic freedom issues which in reality underlie the situation. The trouble is that there is no commonly understood charter in this country and not all institutions have either an academic freedom declaration or an academic freedom committee, or both. In fact, the statements one sometimes see are so watered down that its ridiculous. And, these are documents drafted and debated by academics! There is one of the NTESU Branches which when it first presented its proposed recognition agreement also presented several addenda one of which was about academic freedom. Management in the form of the then Dean of Arts, rejected the notion of including the document and one of the reasons was that there would have to be broader debate of the text before management would agree to it.

WHAT UKZN, AGAIN, PRECIPITATES

So, I was interested in comments forwarded from the UKZN open change listserv recently because they run to a thrust that the NTESU(National) has been pursuing, or, certainly during the times that I have been a member of the NEC. Also NTESU (Rhodes) in 2001, when the Branch refused to attend the Congress of that year because of constitutional issues with the arranging of that Congress, forwarded a motion which their AGM approved and was sent to the NEC of the time and it called for some form of discussion to be generated on Academic freedom. That text in available (as well the text of the UNESCO Recommendation on the Status of Higher Education Teaching Personnel (1997)). It called for action even as far as the Constitutional Court in order to derive a standing common understanding of Academic Freedom in SA (there had already been many violations).

With regard to the comments below by, presumably, a member of the UKZN change listserv :

"I would suggest an approach from NTESU national to the Minister to request facilitation of discussions at all tertiary institutions followed by a national conference on the subject of academic freedom of speech."

** The NTESU NEC met with the Minister of Education in March 2008. At that meeting we raised several issues about academic freedom (UFS, UFH, UKZN, NWU amongst others) and asked the Ministry to facilitate a colloquium on the issue. At the time the HEIAAF document from CHE was not readily available. We also asked the Ministry to facilitate a tri-partite meeting between NTESU, HESA and the DoE HE Division in which the various issues could be exchanged and also it would be a good thing just to create a break in the vacuum between the Union and HESA and its members.

The NTESU National President has been in engagement with the DoE D-G and we would now have to be seeking for them to take up that suggestion with more commitment.

ACADEMIC PROFESSIONALS

There is suggestion around the creation of a professional organisation for academics even under NTESU's guidance. While one can appreciate this suggestion, such a professional organisation presents some difficulties and would not necessarily enjoy the recognition or participation envisaged by proponents. Nothing says that institutions would have to recognise the principia set by such a body even if SACE-like registration and regulations were applied. It might be more appropriate for the NTESU to establish a standing academic freedom sub-committee like the gender reference group. There should also be an academic freedom barometer (and one would advocate to the NEC that NTESU establish part of the NTESU web site as a place to report on these things from submissions by the membership).

Most of this has been bandied about over the years. There was at a time the suggestion that the CHE act in the manner that SACE does / should and that all academics should register as a matter of a "professional" registration. In the case of SACE this means that there are certain minimum qualifications before they will register one as an educator and one cannot be employed unless registered. As we know, until recent years there has been no qualification which qualifies university level staff as educators. (could make a comment often made here but lets not inflame things with reality.)

Its a bit of a fraught issue and academics find many ways to argue against the institution of such a system / requirement. Funnily enough, based on academic freedom (for some misguided reason). One of the arguments is that this sort of thing will tie things down and that is not how academia works. Heck, does it work the other way?

The comment appeared "...I wonder what measures will entrench academic freedom ...".

Senate!

What is the UKZN Senate (or any) doing around all of this. The claim from the management is that this is a disciplinary issue and the rights of the University cannot be questioned - as in the Findon letter to Faculty of Science and Agriculture. But, in reality, Senate could introduce a motion of no confidence in a VC, it could petition itself to gauge the number of senators who support the VC or not. It could refuse to vote with the VC at critical times. A VC without a supporting Senate should be relatively toothless.

Problem with this is that academics seem to find it difficult to take up the "academic arms" available to them when necessary. In fact, when someone at UKZN was asked about this, and the role of Senate, gave the answer that the Senate would not go that far (for various founded or unfounded reasons given we won't go into here). But, at what point are all those full professors embarrassing themselves before their peers? Perhaps they are not all full professors, heads of department? May be the academic roles of Senates have been usurped in favour of managerialism?

Ombud and academic "tribunal" - another suggestion. Well first we have to come to a South African definition that we commonly understand and subscribe to - or there will be no framework for adjudication. The UNESCO Recommendatioin was going to be a declaration but one of the prime drafters said they found it very difficult to get that through. So it ended being a recommendation. That is what will most likely happen with an academic freedom charter. HESA would probably not let it be binding. We won't know until we test them. It would be (and maybe rightly so in a normal academic community) a voluntary matter of subscribing - that leads to many forms of corrupting and ignoring the tenets espoused in the document. The wider world has had these charters for years, the Greeks wrote down seven fundamentals, yet, there are significant violations all the time, internationally.

To enshrine it is one thing, but, as Mbeki said recently, most of the time people take what they interpret and for their own purposes and lose the spirit and organisational nature of these things because they don't like it individually.

This generic comment is also heard : "In my opinion, we need to remove the idea that we are merely employees of the university, and re-establish the idea that we are the university: a collegial academic community".

There are institutions which do it this way, take heart, but collegiality is a very clear myth anywhere. Academics have to note this fact, and that is more or less universal especially when Senate loses its functionality because it does not lead, preferring to be led.

ACADEMIC BOYCOTTS?

One of the primary objects of NTESU is to defend Academic and Research Freedoms as enshrined in the SA Constitution. Some developments which will begin to unfold in the near months will begin to create a strengthening of the position of members of the union movement to more effectively represent these issues.

In terms of the current activity at UKZN. The NTESU (National) has mobilised overseas unions to comment and send these comments to Makgoba, Mr Mia, CHE, DoE, HESA and others. We have encouraged them to decry the violation of academic freedom and also to consider the prospect of an academic boycott by their members, of the institution, until it clearly upholds academic freedom and to state this to the University in their comments.

Of course, they must say what they will and we cannot do too much to lead them, although they did ask the opinion and advice of NTESU as the relevant local nationally based union prior. It remains to be seen how many actually do this. We have sent messages to those office bearers in the EI that we know of as well. If these things come off then a rain of significant messages will be arriving at UKZN. The petition site seems to be going well.

WHAT'S A VALID PRICE?

In 2001 the NTESU (Rhodes) hosted an American academic who was at UFH at the time (Glen Howse) who was horrified at what was happening around a certain issue. They set up a seminar with him and in the end not more than a handful of academics attended.

Its no wonder academic freedom is only defended in the crisis times. There is a huge assumption that collegiality (the grandest of myths) operates and an even bigger assumption that academic freedom just lives and breathes amongst us like some biological fundamental of the system. Short monosylabic English slanguage is the response to that.

At the end of the day what price is attached to academic freedom? Is it the sacrifice of some academics such as those at UKZN and other institutions around the world in the process of chipping away at management until the point made? Is it loss of academic connection with the outside world and broader academia through academic boycotts of institutions? The loss of academic integrity? Academics should ask themselves : whether they actually do enough as individuals or as subscribers to collectives to defend this right and principle? There are few who would admit that the academic community itself is remiss in not being very vocal against managements - all of whom, incidentally, remember, were academics themselves. One isn't required to be a brave person to become an academic but as an academic if one is not brave then one will never take the professional criticism and analysis well.

And, perhaps this is the issue around the world, some Vice-Chancellors are neither brave nor academic.

That's the price, because we allow them to be appointed, either for the wrong reasons, or, without enough force or reason against silly or real imperatives.

ACADEMIC FREEDOM

We either want it or we don't, its not a soft topic.

"But at least we must have some way of entrenching, once and for all, the right to assemble on university property in office hours to discuss what we want to discuss, have access to information, and speak to the media, without needing permission from anyone, least of all unsympathetic "managers". In my opinion, we need to remove the idea that we are merely employees of the university, and re-establish the idea that we are the university: a collegial (!) academic community."

UNITY IN TERTIARY EDUCATION
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