<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/jul/21/draft-israeli-law-to-limit-academic-speech-labelled-mccarthyite>
"Israel’s education minister and the country’s national union of students are
backing a draft law to limit academic speech in the country, which the heads of
leading universities have attacked as “McCarthyite” and fundamentally
undemocratic.
The legislation, currently being debated in the Knesset, would give a
government-appointed committee the power to order the firing of academic staff
that it decides have expressed “support for terror”. If the universities
refuse, their funding would be cut.
Critics say the legislation is fundamentally undemocratic and would undermine
Israeli academia, because it restricts free speech and allows politicians to
weaponise accusations that should be handled by the legal system.
The president of the prestigious Technion – Israel Institute of Technology,
known for links to the country’s hi-tech and defence industries, said the law
was “McCarthyite”.
“It is a form of McCarthyism, a very violent form, because it is meant to
threaten people not to express their mind, in a system that should be free of
any intimidation, encouraging free speech, encouraging criticism,” Uri Sivan
said."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
