It’s been a week where the situation in Ukraine has gone from bad, to worse, to terrifying. Written from a distance of several thousand miles that doesn’t even begin to do justice to the lives of the people who are being shelled and bombed on a daily basis. In the face of such naked aggression the UK higher education sector has let itself down by declining to stand together, let along stand with Ukraine, in stopping institutional links with Russian universities.
The final straw may be the publication of a statement by the Russian Union of Rectors who describe the invasion and its consequences as “events that excite every citizen of Russia”. They describe their main duty as being to “to conduct a continuous educational process, to educate patriotism in young people, the desire to help the Motherland” and call on people to “rally around our President”. Regrettably, the statement suggests that Russian universities have, either by choice or coercion, fallen completely under state control.
Before the autonomous, self-governing institutions of the UK begin to admire themselves and their independence it would be good to consider what the two leading umbrella groups have to say about the issue of severing links. Prof Colin Riordan, the vice-chancellor of Cardiff University, a member of the Russell Group, told the Guardian that “if the government were to tell his university to cut ties with Russia, it would do so because of the “bigger things at stake”.” Prof Steve West, the president of the vice-chancellors’ group Universities UK, said, “I think we have to expect science sanctions….what is happening is a challenge on democracy and the safety and stability of the free world.”
Two leading figures recognizing that the future of the “free world” and “bigger things” are at stake but without the moral fibre, good sense or humanity to ensure that their university groups take a stand. They would sooner wait for the Government to tell them what to do than to show leadership or act like the independent institutions they are expected to be. That begins to sound remarkably like the Rectors of the Russian Union waiting for the Government to tell them what statement to make.
The dithering and self-serving went so far that Universities UK had to be prodded to make any sort of statement about the Ukraine crisis and as of Monday 7 March the Russell Group has no statement at all on its website. The Russell Group claims it “represents 24 leading UK universities. We believe people and ideas are the key to meeting global challenges”. It seems to me that on this occasion they and their members have failed to either recognize or meet the most obvious and present global challenge before them.
There is plenty of evidence in front of the Russell Group and UniversitiesUK that it is possible to take decisive action in cutting links without their privileged and cloistered worlds falling in. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Warwick, the European Commission, the universities of Germany, Estonia and Lithuania, Russian scientists and science journalists, and many others have expressed their revulsion. The editor of the Journal of Molecular Structure even very carefully explained how it is possible to sanction institutional links while allowing individual academics to continue participating.
We also know that some institutions are acting with the universities of Aberdeen, St Andrews and Dundee saying they have already cut ties with Russia and Edinburgh is reviewing its investment stake in Sberbank. In England, unfortunately, the supposedly urgent review of science and innovation ties that George Freeman MP announced with a flourish on 27 February has not yet had an outcome. Eight days later there is no outcome.
I’d thank all of those who have taken action and those who continue to press their institutions to do the right thing. Cutting institutional ties is not the same as banning discussions between individual academics or ceasing support for students from Russia both of which should continue with due regard for everyone’s safety. Neither is it to deny the very real demonstrations against Putin’s Government that have been held in Russia where individuals are literally taking their lives in their hands to stand up for what is right.
But to everything there is a season and it is time to take action in suspending university links before they become normalized under the most oppressive of circumstances. There will be a time to review whether these sanctions can be lifted and whether they serve any purpose. We can all hope that is a moment that is not too long in coming.