Academic freedom - Quo Vadis?
Ron Breiman says we shouldn’t allow Palestinians to study at Israeli academic institutions
Various elements in the State of Israel sometimes behave as though the “New Middle East” vision has already been realized, and as if we enjoy peaceful relations with our neighbors, as is the case between the United States and Canada. Otherwise, it is difficult to understand why the heads of academic institutes would approach the defense establishment and ask for permission to accept students from enemy states.
In their letter to the defense minister, they asked him to refrain from setting security preconditions for accepting Palestinian students to Israeli academic institutions, as not to undermine academic freedom.
Academic freedom is indeed an important and essential condition for the maintenance of high-level academic teaching and research. However, turning this into a slogan that allows hostile elements into teaching and research institutes during a time of war, and this includes enemy subjects who are found not to pose any personal danger, is unreasonable and uncommon at any location where war takes place.
Even if the official Israel has been refraining, for puzzling reasons, from defining the Oslo War as such, instead insisting on characterizing it as an “Intifada,” “low-intensity warfare,” and various other odd descriptions, our reality is one of war.
Similarly, while academic freedom is indeed an important and essential condition for maintaining high-level teaching and research, it must not prevent sane conduct by a country facing existential war vis-à-vis its enemies. We should hope that nobody around here would allow Iranian students to study nuclear physics in Israel in the name of academic freedom. Indeed, academic freedom must not come at the expense of healthy and logical thinking.
Beware enemy subjects
In order to remove any doubt, I want to make clear that I am not talking about Arab students who are Israeli citizens or students who are citizens of Arab countries that signed peace treaties with Israel. Rather, I am referring to Arab students who are subjects of the Palestinian terror authority, whether we are dealing with the branch that resides in Ramallah or in Gaza. Therefore, this is about enemy subjects – an enemy that has been operating openly and consistently against the State of Israel and its citizens – including the branch which seemingly engages in peace negotiations with Israel, yet pursues identical objectives as its Gaza brethren-partners: Eliminating the State of Israel.
Under such circumstances, there is no room for providing enemy subjects with higher education services, just like we should curb the flawed custom of handing over territory, funds, infrastructure services, armored cars, guns etc. to the enemy, as long as it’s an enemy. In light of its conduct, declarations, and school curriculum, we are talking about another generation at least.
The foolish attempt to compare the failure to allow enemy subjects to study in Israel with the quotas on Jewish students at various European states is inappropriate. There it was a case of discrimination against the citizens of these countries because of their Jewishness, and not because they were enemy subjects.
The comparison to a possible boycott in Britain and other countries against Israeli students and scientists is also inappropriate. In this context, the proper question is whether Britain allowed German students and scientists to enjoy academic freedom in its territory during World War II. The answer is of course negative. This is how every sane country would conduct itself vis-à-vis enemy subjects.
At this time, as we mark the third anniversary of the expulsion of Jews from the Gaza Strip and northern Samaria just because they were Jewish, it would be proper to ask where were all those self-righteous human rights advocates, who are so concerned about the enemy’s education, while Jews were transferred and are refugees in their own country to this day.
Dr. Ron Breiman served as Chairman of Professors for a Strong Israel in the years 2001-2005
