April 4, 2019

‘Understanding others' academic seminar

UOW responds to Illawarra Mercury misreporting and assaults on free speech. 

The University of Wollongong refutes the incorrect assertions made by the Illawarra Mercury in its article Anti-gay sheikh at UOW event spruiking controversial Ramsay degree published at 12.24pm on Thursday 4 April 2019.

This seminar was convened to engage with notions of peace, social identity, religion, culture and how they impact our understanding of others in a free society. The workshop was designed to bring together philosophers, researchers and community leaders in a respectful and open discussion.

The event was organised and sponsored by the newly formed School of Liberal Arts in the Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts, as a genuine initiative aimed at fostering open and respectful discussion to foster mutual, cross-cultural understanding.

Contrary to the assertions published by the Illawarra Mercury, this event was not convened to “spruik” the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation.

Sheikh Jamil El-Biza was invited because of the position he holds as a local Muslim community leader. Judith Hurley was invited as a founding member of local association, Illawarra People for Peace.

These invitations were not related to their personal views or any previous public comments in mainstream or social media.

The University of Wollongong is committed to upholding academic freedom and freedom of speech. It does not endorse or disendorse the diverse views of its academics, students or visiting speakers.

UOW refutes any claims that staff have been pressured not to express their views about the new degree or the University’s agreement with the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation. Academic staff members have openly exercised their academic freedom through protests and public commentary.

UOW similarly condemns any attempts to undermine freedom of speech or academic freedom by attempting to ‘silence’ or ‘de-platform’ speakers on ideological grounds at any academic event.

Both community speakers have withdrawn from the event program. The academic portion of the activity will proceed as planned.

Future events will be scheduled as part of continuing efforts to bring together diverse views and foster respectful discussion and debate.

The University also refutes the Illawarra Mercury’s description of the Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation as a “Ramsay Centre degree”.

The Bachelor of Arts in Western Civilisation curriculum was entirely developed by the University of Wollongong and proposed to the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation in response to the Centre’s call for expressions of interest, to which several other universities also responded.

The repeated description of this program as a “Ramsay degree” by the Illawarra Mercury ignores the University’s repeated public statements correcting this description.