The Malaysian Insider
BY ELIZABETH ZACHARIAH
BY ELIZABETH ZACHARIAH
Malaysian
institutions of higher learning should start behaving like world-class
universities, says Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, following Universiti of
Malaya's (UM) refusal to allow the prominent lawyer to speak at its law
convention last week.
Claiming
it was a ridiculous move by the university, the former Bersih co-chair
said UM was setting a bad example by curtailing the rights of students
and clamping down on academic freedom.
"This
has to stop. We cannot have narrow-minded people up there telling us
this. Public institutions of higher learning should start behaving like
world-class universities," she told The Malaysian Insider.
Ambiga,
who is the former Bar Council president, was scheduled to speak at the
Law Faculty’s Law Career Convention on Public Interest Litigation on
March 29.
A
student representative said an official letter was sent to the
university's deputy vice-chancellor of Student Affairs to seek
permission for Ambiga to deliver the lecture on March 25.
The
university had initially agreed on condition that there should also be a
pro-establishment speaker at the convention to make it more balanced.
However,
the approval was retracted with the excuse that Ambiga's lecture was
not part of the programme, which was organised by the UM Law Society.
A
group of UM students handed a memorandum to Pakatan Rakyat (PR) MPs
yesterday to protest the university's decision and its attempt to
violate their rights.
Student
group Progressive University Malaya president Richtyne Yusuf said the
university seemed to be practising double standards when it came to
speakers allowed to deliver lectures.
“When
Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was invited to give a lecture, there were no
issue. But when Ambiga was invited, the seminar was cancelled. This
seems unfair,” he said.
Ambiga
praised the students who stood up against the university's move, noting
that it shows that there is still "hope in the country".
"I
was pleasantly surprised that the students are not letting this go. I
feel encouraged by what they are doing now, that they will not let their
right to academic freedom be taken away.
"I am happy that they realise the world is at their feet," said the lawyer.
Ambiga
said she has not faced such a situation before but was told that
students were afraid of inviting her for fear of getting into trouble
with university officials.
"I
learnt that previously, students had wanted to invite me to speak but
backed down because they knew they will run into trouble with the
university.
"This shows that they are practising self-censorship and this is wrong," she said.
Meanwhile,
Association for the Promotion of Human Rights (Proham) chairman, Datuk
Kuthubul Zaman, also took a swipe at UM, saying the university should
have considered Ambiga's vast experience as a top lawyer than her
"presumed political inclination".
"Proham
calls on the university to reconsider their decision and to allow Datuk
Ambiga Sreenevasan to address the law students on Public Interest
Litigation. It is a clear violation of the students’ rights and a
contravention of a universal human right to freedom of speech and
expression.
"Ambiga
herself had personally appeared as counsel in the High Court, Court of
Appeal and the Federal Court on issues concerning public interest. Her
valuable experience is an asset for her to share with the law students.
In the circumstances, the decision by the university in refusing her to
address the law students is puzzling," he added in a statement.
The
Malaysian Insider sent emails and made telephone calls to the offices
of the university vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Mohd Amin Jalaludin
and the Dean of the Law Faculty, Associate Professor Dr Johan
Shamsuddin Sabaruddin, but they have not responded at press time. –
April 9, 2014.
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