"Measuring" the Erosion of Academic Freedom as an International Human Right: A Report on the Legal Protection of Academic Freedom in Europe (original) (raw)
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European Journal of Comparative Law and Governance, 3(3), 254-345, 2016
This article resembles: "Measuring" the Erosion of Academic Freedom as an International Human Right: A Report on the Legal Protection of Academic Freedom in Europe (Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, 49(3), 2016, 597-691). However, it includes new sections (such as Part 5 on "Indicators and Rankings: Some Observations"), uses different examples in the main part (Part 8 on "The Legal Protection of the Right to Academic Freedom in Europe: The Results of the Assessment"), and, generally, constitutes a new/revised arrangement of content. Focusing on those countries that are members of the European Union, it may be noted that these countries are bound under international human rights agreements, such as the International Covenants on Civil and Political, and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights or the European Convention on Human Rights, to safeguard academic freedom under provisions providing for the right to freedom of expression, the right to education, and respect for “the freedom indispensable for scientific research.” UNESCO’s Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel, a “soft-law” document of 1997, concretises international human rights requirements to be complied with to make the protection of the right to academic freedom effective. Relying on a set of human rights indicators, the present article assesses the extent to which the constitutions, laws on higher education, and other relevant legislation of EU states implement the Recommendation’s criteria. The situation of academic freedom in practice will not be assessed here. The results for the various countries have been quantified and countries ranked in accordance with “their performance.” The assessment demonstrates that, overall, the state of the protection of the right to academic freedom in the law of European states is one of “ill-health.” Institutional autonomy is being misconstrued as exhausting the concept of academic freedom, self-governance in higher education institutions sacrificed for “executive-style” management, and employment security abrogated to cater for “changing employment needs” in higher education.
Retrogression in the Legal Protection of the Right to Academic Freedom in Europe
New Zealand Journal of Research on Europe, 10(1), 1-60, 2016
This article is a condensed and reworked version of: "Measuring" the Erosion of Academic Freedom as an International Human Right: A Report on the Legal Protection of Academic Freedom in Europe (Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, 49(3), 2016, 597-691), making the research results available to an audience versed in the higher education sciences. The article assesses to what extent the right to academic freedom as construed in terms of international human rights law, specifically UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel of 1997, is protected in the law of the 28 Member States of the European Union. It determines the elements of this right, to then operationalise these by way of indicators accorded numeric values in order to assess state compliance and rank states in terms of their performance. The article shows that there is retrogression in Europe insofar as the legal protection of the right to academic freedom is concerned. Institutional autonomy is being misconstrued, academic self-governance denied and job security eroded. These developments appear to be the result of deliberate policy decisions by EU Member States seeking to make higher education “the arm of national economic policy,” so as to ensure higher education will contribute to national GDP.
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Focusing on those countries that are members of the European Union, it may be noted that these countries are bound under international human rights agreements, such as the International Covenants on Civil and Political, and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights or the European Convention on Human Rights, to safeguard academic freedom under provisions providing for the right to freedom of expression, the right to education, and respect for ‘the freedom indispensable for scientific research.’ unesco’s Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel, a ‘soft-law’ document of 1997, concretises international human rights requirements to be complied with to make the protection of the right to academic freedom effective. Relying on a set of human rights indicators, the present article assesses the extent to which the constitutions, laws on higher education, and other relevant legislation of eu states implement the Recommendation’s criteria. The situation of acade...
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