London School of Economics director Howard Davies resigns after fresh
allegations over institution's links to Libyan regime
Jeevan Vasagar and Rajeev Syal
Thursday 3 March 2011 20.36 GMT
Howard Davies has resigned as director of the London School of
Economics. Photograph: Eamonn Mccabe for the Guardian
A deepening row over the London School of Economics and its dealings
with the Gaddafi regime has claimed the career of the university's
director.
Sir Howard Davies resigned over fresh revelations that the institution
had been involved in a deal to train hundreds of young Libyans to
become part of the country's future elite. Davies admitted at the
start of this week that he felt embarrassed about the university's
ties with the dictator's family.
A leaked US diplomatic cable indicates that the British government was
also party to the deal to bring 400 Libyans to Britain for leadership
training. The cable, published by WikiLeaks, suggests that other UK
universities were involved in similar schemes, though there is no
independent confirmation of this.
The university's reputation has taken a battering over links with the
Libyan regime, which include a donation of £1.5m from a charitable
foundation run by one of Muammar Gaddafi's sons, Saif al-Islam, who
studied at the LSE. On Tuesday, the LSE agreed to put £300,000,
equivalent to the cash it has received from the foundation, into a
scholarship for north African students.
But that was not enough to draw a line under the affair. On Thursday
morning, a report of the WikiLeaks claims was circulated to members of
the LSE council, its governing body in advance of a crisis meeting on
Thursday night.
In September 2009, US diplomats were told by Libya's national economic
development board: "The NEDB is cooperating with the UK government and
the London School of Economics, among other UK institutions, on an
exchange program to send 400 'future leaders' of Libya for leadership
and management training."
A Libyan official told the diplomats that, apparently as part of the
same deal: "Two hundred and fifty additional Libyan 'future leaders'
would also be trained in Libya. Likewise, the NEDB is working with
universities in the United States (Michigan State and elsewhere), the
UK, and France to manage exchange programs for 90 young Libyan
diplomats (30 Libyan diplomats are currently being trained in each
country)."
The official, Faouzi Saleh Elmozogi, said the NEDB "had also sent 70
Libyan judges to the UK to study English language and international
law".
The Foreign Office confirmed that the NEDB had sent 70 Libyan judges
and 30 diplomats to the LSE to study English language and
international law.
It remained unclear whether these were in addition to the 400 "future
leaders" agreed as part of a £1m deal to train the dictatorship's
elite.
A diplomatic source said: "The Foreign Office was aware of the deal.
But it was a purely private arrangement and was not something that the
Foreign Office was intimately involved with."
The source added that as far as the Foreign Office was aware, the LSE
was the only British university involved in the Libyan leaders'
programme.
These revelations put fresh pressure on Davies, who had begun the week
attempting to salvage the LSE's reputation with an act of contrition.
He appeared on BBC Radio 4's Today programme to say: "We thought that
since he [Saif al-Islam] was not going to control the research that
this was a reasonable thing to do and this was supported widely in the
school.
"It was debated at some length. We took a risk on that and I think
it's right to say that that risk backfired on us.
"I feel embarrassed about it but I don't think the decision was made
without due consideration at the time."
The LSE has separately confirmed it was investigating claims that Saif
Gaddafi had plagiarised parts of his doctoral thesis, allegations that
have caused further embarrassment.
On Tuesday, after a meeting of the LSE council, the university said in
a statement that the governing body had endorsed the director's
decisions to date.
It said that the Gaddafi grant proposal had been "agreed by the
council for reasons which appeared sound at that time".
The LSE has come under pressure from its students to return the
Gaddafi donation.
Ashok Kumar, the education officer of the LSE students' union said :
"The recent revelations have shone a light on one part of the
relationship between the upper echelons of the LSE and the Gaddafi
family, which is deeper and more perverse than we would have ever
imagined.
"This issue is damaging the reputation of the school – it should be a
place of learning – not at the centre of unscrupulous dealings with
Libyan regime."
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2011
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