[Guardian-UK] Donald MacLeod - The UK lecturers' union has abandoned attempts to boycott Israeli universities after years of international controversy, opponents of the policy said Wednesday. In the face of legal threats, the leadership of the University and College Union has quietly dropped plans to implement a conference motion that instructed members to "consider the moral and political implications of educational links with Israeli institutions." In response to this year's motion, a group of 12 members threatened to sue the union, arguing that it amounted to a boycott in all but name and was illegal discrimination contrary to the UCU's own rules. Prof. Michael Yudkin, emeritus professor of biochemistry at Oxford and the group's spokesman, said: "It is clear that the union has backed down, but they don't want to say it in so many words." "We are not talking about freedom of speech but proposals to discriminate unlawfully against a group of individuals."
2008-12-12 08:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive