Desertification of oases of freedom
Editorial-July 12, 2013, 8:56 pm
Yesterday, we front-paged a picture of the President and the Secretary of the Federation of University Teachers Associations (FUTA), Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri and Dr. Rohan Fernando respectively, lugging a table for an outdoor media briefing at the Colombo University as they had been denied permission to have that meeting inside any of the buildings on the campus. Our late city edition had on its page one a report that scientists would examine the sacred Bo tree at Bodh Gaya, where Prince Siddhartha attained Enlightenment, following Sunday’s blast. Obviously, there is nothing in common between a holy shrine and a university in an unholy mess, but that report reminded us of something the Buddha said in one of his discourses with the Maha Sanga—Antho jata Bahi Jata, which roughly rendered into English means, ‘Complexities or knotty problems everywhere, inside and outside’. One cannot think of anything better than this aphorism to describe what is happening in this thrice blessed land which has had to contend with many intractable problems, both internal and external.
Universities represent only a segment of a conflict-ridden society characterised by discord and acrimony at every level. It was only a few moons ago that we witnessed a fierce clash between the Executive and the Judiciary, whose head was finally ousted controversially. The fallout of the dispute has not blown over yet. The Opposition and the government have always been at loggerheads, refusing to see eye to eye on anything. The former has even gone to the extent of holding the latter responsible for Sunday’s serial blasts at Bodh Gaya, and not to be outdone the latter might concoct a conspiracy theory in a bid to accuse the former of having had a hand in those terror attacks. Little surprise that universities are in crisis with dons and administrators at one another’s jugular!
However, the shabby treatment meted out to the FUTA and the media at the Colombo University on Thursday has left a bad taste in people’s mouths, we reckon. The university administration may try to justify its decision on technical grounds, but it is obvious that the newly appointed Vice Chancellor has begun to flex his administrative muscles as the FUTA opposed his appointment on ethical grounds and threatened not to cooperate with him. Even those who refused to buy into his opponents’ arguments against his appointment and faulted the FUTA for applying ethics selectively have, we believe, taken exception to the manner in which university teachers’ trade union is being dealt with.
The groves of academe should be an oasis of freedom and justice. If dons are not allowed to meet the press at a university, then there is something terribly wrong with that place. On the other hand, what moral right do university administrators who have no qualms about pandering to the whims and fancies of politicians with deep pockets and shallow minds have to ban meetings between teachers and media persons within university premises? Anyway, irate teachers proved that they were made of sterner stuff by addressing the media near a campus gate on Thursday. There have been several instances where they gave press conferences across the university’s barbed wire fence much to the embarrassment of university authorities.
We do not fully agree with the FUTA on its position on stern action being taken against some troublemakers in the garb of student activists. Those unruly elements have to be severely dealt with according to the law so that universities could function smoothly. But, dissent must be tolerated at seats of higher learning and freedom of expression safeguarded.
