29 September 2010
PRESS RELEASE - SA UNIVERSITY: Conditional termination with Israeli institution
This afternoon, after what was described as a "most tense" Senate meeting, UJ's highest academic body voted to conditionally end its Apartheid-era relationship with Ben-Gurion University (BGU). A fact-finding investigation conducted by the University confirmed BGU's links with the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and complicity in the Israeli occupation.
Against the backdrop of a significant public campaign, these findings confirm the facts presented in a nationwide academic petition, which has been supported by over 250 South African academics(www.ujpetition.com). The petition has been backed by Vice-Chancellors from four universities, and prominent leaders such as Breyten Breytenbach, John Dugard, Antjie Krog, Barney Pityana, Kader Asmal and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The overwhelming support of respected South African voices has highlighted the structural complicity of Israeli universities in the occupation and, as a result, the decision by UJ emphasises the necessity for South African universities to reconsider their affiliations to Israeli institutions.
Accepting the recommendations of the report, UJ has committed itself to end any research or teaching relationship with BGU that has direct or indirect military links; or in instances where human rights abuses are identified. If BGU violates any of the conditions agreed on by Senate or UJ's stated principles, which include "solidarity with any oppressed population", the relationship will be terminated automatically after 6 months. Further, Senate has recognised the necessity for the University to engage with Palestinian universities and has made this a requirement for interaction with the Israeli institution.
Whilst the decision marks an unprecedented development towards the complete boycott of Israel by South Africa, UJ's decision goes only part of the way in meeting the demands raised by the petitioners – which was to insist that Israel must abide by international law and that BGU terminates all privileges extended to the IDF. With this milestone in the academic boycott of Israel, the campaign for boycott will persist in taking these gains forward.
www.ujpetition.com
PRESS RELEASE - SA UNIVERSITY: Conditional termination with Israeli institution
This afternoon, after what was described as a "most tense" Senate meeting, UJ's highest academic body voted to conditionally end its Apartheid-era relationship with Ben-Gurion University (BGU). A fact-finding investigation conducted by the University confirmed BGU's links with the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and complicity in the Israeli occupation.
Against the backdrop of a significant public campaign, these findings confirm the facts presented in a nationwide academic petition, which has been supported by over 250 South African academics(www.ujpetition.com). The petition has been backed by Vice-Chancellors from four universities, and prominent leaders such as Breyten Breytenbach, John Dugard, Antjie Krog, Barney Pityana, Kader Asmal and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The overwhelming support of respected South African voices has highlighted the structural complicity of Israeli universities in the occupation and, as a result, the decision by UJ emphasises the necessity for South African universities to reconsider their affiliations to Israeli institutions.
Accepting the recommendations of the report, UJ has committed itself to end any research or teaching relationship with BGU that has direct or indirect military links; or in instances where human rights abuses are identified. If BGU violates any of the conditions agreed on by Senate or UJ's stated principles, which include "solidarity with any oppressed population", the relationship will be terminated automatically after 6 months. Further, Senate has recognised the necessity for the University to engage with Palestinian universities and has made this a requirement for interaction with the Israeli institution.
Whilst the decision marks an unprecedented development towards the complete boycott of Israel by South Africa, UJ's decision goes only part of the way in meeting the demands raised by the petitioners – which was to insist that Israel must abide by international law and that BGU terminates all privileges extended to the IDF. With this milestone in the academic boycott of Israel, the campaign for boycott will persist in taking these gains forward.
www.ujpetition.com
Mr Herman ESTERHUIZEN
Coordinator: Media Relations
Division of Marketing and Communication
Tel +27 11 559 6653
Cell +27 72 129 0777
Media release:
2010-09-29
UJ sets conditions for link with Israeli university
The Senate of the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has voted not to
continue a long-standing relationship with Ben Gurion University (BGU)
in Israel in its present form and has set conditions for the
relationship to continue.
The conditions are that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
governing the relationship between the two institutions be amended to
include Palestinian universities chosen with the direct involvement of
UJ. These universities are to be consulted on the terms of the amended
MoU and UJ will consider their views.
Additionally, UJ will not engage in any activities with BGU that have
direct or indirect military implications, this to be monitored by UJ's
Senate Academic Freedom Committee.
The UJ Senate also requests BGU to "respect UJ's duty to take
seriously allegations of behaviour on the part of BGU's stakeholders
that is incompatible with UJ's values" and calls on BGU to respond to
reasonable requests from UJ seeking more information about "BGU's
formal policies and informal practices".
Should the conditions imposed by UJ not be met within six months, the
MoU between the two institutions will automatically lapse on 1 April
2011.
It will also lapse if there are any violations of UJ's stated
principles, which the Senate task team outlines as "solidarity with
any oppressed population" and that UJ's engagement with BGU and other
institutions in the region must "encourage reconciliation and the
advancement of human dignity and human solidarity".
The Senate vote still has to be ratified by the Council of the
University, but BGU and its advocacy group in South Africa will be
notified of the task team's findings and the Senate vote by Professor
Ihron Rensburg, Vice-Chancellor of UJ.
The Senate action is the result of findings by a task team established
at a special meeting of the university Senate on 17 May where some
members of the University's highest academic body proposed to sever
the current Memorandum of Understanding between UJ and BGU because of
alleged incompatibility between BGU's practices and UJ's central
values.
After hearing representations, the Senate decided to form a task team
that would put its mind to the issues raised and make a recommendation
to the Senate on how to respond to the proposal to sever links with
BGU.
The committee, which was headed by Professor Adam Habib,
Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Advancement at UJ, was
evenly divided between advocates for termination of links and those in
favour of continued conditional engagement.
"The committee met five times with a view to finding a principled
common ground on which a recommendation to Senate could be advanced,"
says Professor Habib. "In developing this recommendation we were
mindful that our recommendation would need to be consistently applied
in other similar contexts where UJ's central values were not upheld
and where human rights abuses were identified."
Media Release: UJ senate decision on ties with Israeli university
Issued by the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC)
29 September 2010
Following massive mobilisation among South African academics, the
senate of the University of Johannesburg voted today 'not to continue
a long-standing relationship with Ben Gurion University (BGU) in
Israel in its present form and has set conditions for the relationship
to continue.'
The PSC welcomes the commitment of the UJ senate to be in 'solidarity
with all oppressed people'. Its decision – and, more especially, the
massive support given to the petition calling for the ties between UJ
and BGU to be severed – should put Israeli apologists in South Africa
on notice that the campaign for an academic boycott of Israeli
institutions has begun in earnest in this country.
Cooperation between BGU and UJ had begun in the 1980s (when UJ was an
apartheid institution called the Rand Afrikaans Universiteit – RAU),
and was recently encapsulated in a memorandum of agreement between the
universities. While such relationships between the two apartheid
states and their institutions was common before 1994, they have no
place in our post-apartheid society.
The conditions for UJ renewing its cooperation with BGU were:
That UJ will not be involved in any activities with BGU that have
'direct or indirect military implications'. (In its statement, UJ
acknowledged that BGU had a relationship with the Israeli Occupation
Forces.)
That BGU respects UJ's duty to take all allegations against BGU seriously. And
That BGU supplies UJ with information regarding the former's 'formal
policies and informal practices'.
That the MOU between BGU and UJ be amended to include Palestinian
universities – which will be chosen with UJ's involvement.
If BGU is unable to fulfil these conditions within six months, UJ's
senate said, the MOU will lapse on 1 April 2011. We are convinced that
BGU will not be able to meet these conditions because it cannot
extricate itself from its apartheid culture and practice. The lapsing
of this deal with a university that unashamedly supports racism,
apartheid, occupation and colonialism will signal South African
academia's refusal to deal with institutions whose very ethos violates
the human rights, justice, and equality that South Africans fought
for. It will also highlight the South African commitment to continue
to fight for these values and be on the side of oppressed people
everywhere.
We salute the more than 250 academics who signed the petition calling
on UJ to end its relations with BGU (see www.ujpetition.com), a
university whose racism is reflected even in its enrolment policies.
We are particularly thrilled that four university vice-chancellors
have signed on to the campaign, and are sure that this indicates that
any suggestion of cooperation with institutions that support apartheid
will immediately be dismissed by South African universities in future.
The range of signatories gives hope to those of us who opposed
apartheid in South Africa and oppose apartheid against the Palestinian
people. It also gives us hope for the possibility of a successful
South African academic boycott campaign against Israeli institutions,
and a successful boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign in
general against Israel.
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