WASHINGTON | 30th July 2011 | ExpressBuzz: As thecontroversy over an article written by Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy snowballed, a US civil liberties group cautioned Harvard University on taking action against its Summer School instructor.

Swamy, who earned his PhD from Harvard in 1965, penned an op-ed published July 16 in Mumbai’s DNA newspaper that advocated denial of voting rights to non-Hindus with the goal of stemming terrorist attacks in India.

Following the publication of the article, several Harvard affiliates circulated a petition calling on the university to end its ties with Swamy. The petition has gathered 312 signatures to date and in a statement, the dean of the Summer School said that the school “will give this matter our serious attention”.

But in a letter to University President Drew G. Faust, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), a civil liberties group with a focus on academia, said the group is “concerned about the threat to freedom of expression” that may come about from that attention.

“The threat of a disciplinary investigation of Swamy stands in sharp and unflattering contrast to this admirable and appropriate understanding of the importance of freedom of expression in the academic community,” Adam H. Kissel ’94, vice president of programmes at FIRE, wrote in the letter as cited by Harvard Crimson, the university newsletter.

Harvard has not explicitly said that it is investigating Swamy or that it has considered such an investigation.

Kissel wrote that an investigation of Swamy’s article would go against Harvard’s commitment to free speech, as outlined in the “Free Speech Guidelines” adopted by the Faculty of Arts and Sciences in 1990.

“If members of the Harvard community are given to understand that Harvard might begin an investigation-with possible disciplinary consequences-of the views they express, they likely will self-censor,” he wrote. “This is precisely the result that a university dedicated to intellectual freedom must seek to avoid.”

“Harvard must honour its own promises,” he told the Crimson in a phone interview.

“Students have every right to protest for or against ideas in article, as does Harvard, but Harvard may not investigate or punish the expression.”

3 comments on “Swamy’s article, “How to wipe out Islamic terror” now rocked Harvard”

1. Dr. R. K. D.Goel.

   August 5, 2011

   

   Now time is not far away when the congress will be no where. Hindus will again regain their Hindutya of Swami Vivakananda glory.

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2. Pragmatic Indian

   August 5, 2011

   

   With all your support Harvard University has upheld DR. Swamy’s right to free speech. Long live Dr. Swamy

   Statement released by Harvard spokesman, Jeff A. Neal on Sunday.

   “As an institution of research and teaching, we are dedicated to the proposition that all people, regardless of color or creed, deserve equal opportunities, equal respect, and equal protection. Recent writings by Dr. Swamy therefore are distressing to many members of our community, and understandably so,” the statement said. However, it added: “It is central to the mission of a university to protect free speech, including that of Dr. Swamy and of those who disagree with him. We are ultimately stronger as a university when we maintain our commitment to the most basic freedoms that enable the robust exchange of ideas.”

   Full report here :

   Harvard, India and Intolerance
   August 1, 2011
   Subramanian Swamy isn’t your average summer school instructor. Swamy was a Harvard University economics professor before returning to politics in India, where he is president of the Janata Party. But he comes back to Cambridge in the summer to teach at the university, still sharing his views in India — views that are setting off a debate at the university and in his home country.

   In an op-ed in Daily News & Analysis last month, Swamy responded to a recent bombing by Muslim terrorists in Mumbai. India could wipe out terrorism, he wrote, by taking certain steps, such as declaring India a Hindu state where “non-Hindus can vote only if they proudly acknowledge that their ancestors were Hindus,” or demolishing mosques, or banning conversion from Hinduism to any other faith. The op-ed’s author ID didn’t note Swamy’s Harvard connection, but it didn’t take long for word of it to reach the university.

   Some students said that, while respecting academic freedom, they find it offensive that an instructor could be advocating the removal of voting rights for people of a given religion.

   A petition from Harvard students and parents, plus others, demanding that Harvard “terminate” Swamy’s association with the university states that he has gone beyond what is acceptable discourse. “While free expression and the vigorous contest of ideas are essential in any academic community, so, too, are respect and tolerance for human difference. By advocating measures that would grossly violate freedom of religion and the unqualified right to vote for different religious groups, and by aggressively vilifying an entire religious community, Swamy breaches the most basic standards of respect and tolerance,” the petition says.

   The petition also raises issues about his fairness as an instructor: “Swamy’s comments cast doubt on his ability to treat a diverse community of students with fairness and respect. The highly insulting and stereotypical nature of his comments suggest that he cannot be trusted to regard Muslims — and no doubt other groups — with anything but a jaundiced eye.”

   The dispute has attracted considerable attention in India, with some groups calling for Swamy to be arrested, and with the country’s National Commission for Minorities planning a discussion this week of the implications of the article.

   There have also been reports — starting in The Harvard Crimson (based on quoting the summer school dean as saying “we will give this matter serious attention”) and spreading elsewhere — that Harvard is planning some kind of review of Swamy as well. The Foundation for Individual Rights last week wrote to Drew Faust, Harvard’s president, noting those reports, and calling on the university not to investigate Swamy’s statements or take action against him. The statement about “serious attention,” FIRE wrote, “will unacceptably chill expression among members of Harvard’s community.”

   Despite that quote, there is no investigation, and Swamy has been teaching his courses (which conclude this week) without incident.

   And a Harvard spokesman, Jeff A. Neal, released a statement Sunday that — while noting the concern over Swamy’s statements — defended his free speech rights.

   “As an institution of research and teaching, we are dedicated to the proposition that all people, regardless of color or creed, deserve equal opportunities, equal respect, and equal protection. Recent writings by Dr. Swamy therefore are distressing to many members of our community, and understandably so,” the statement said. However, it added: “It is central to the mission of a university to protect free speech, including that of Dr. Swamy and of those who disagree with him. We are ultimately stronger as a university when we maintain our commitment to the most basic freedoms that enable the robust exchange of ideas.”

   — Scott Jaschik

   Link for original : http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2011/08/01/harvard_faces_questions_about_a_prominent_instructor_from_india

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3. Unni Nair

   October 14, 2011

   

   Save Swamy, the lone Crusader Against Corruption, whose perseverance has landed the likes of Raja and company behind bars and is continuing his efforts to take more corrupt heads. It is not the joint opposition which did it. It is the One Man Army called Swamy who did it. Show him your support by signing the online Petition.

   http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?ABC9876

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