International: Academic freedom reports wide-reaching

In Iran, a student activist is 74 times, just hours before his hit release from prison after serving a one-year sentence for insulting the president. A Russian historian specializing in the lives of ethnic Germans during the Soviet era went on trial behind closed doors on charges of unlawful disclosure personal data. In the USE, a Sorbonne Abeu Dhabi University lecturer detained since April on charges of insulting officials and rights groups, the university requested to support him. A former University rector Cyprus of Augusta municipality of infringement of his right to freedom of expression by the cancellation of a lecture on July 11 naval base blast accused. In India, a row erupted after the Delhi University's decision to a controversial essay in its history curriculum includes, and in Malaysia students protested against the suspension of a law lecturer criticized the Sultan of Clangorous.

Iran: Student activist beaten insulting Ahmadinejad

Iranian student activist Penman Are is 74 times, just hours before his hit release from Terran's Even prison for insulting President Mahmud Ahmadinejad, the Guardian reported on 9 October.

A masked prison guard administered the large number of prison officials and Area’s wife.

Are, a political science student at Tehran University, was arrested challenge in the wake of the 2009 presidential elections and charged with propaganda against the state and the contact with foreign media.

In March 2010 he was sentenced to a year in prison and 74 lashes insulting the president. As a sign of protest, in a letter condemning the authorities 'crackdown on politically active students at universities, Aref refused to begin a letter to the president with the formal introduction addressed' Salam.

The student activist was also banned for life from working as a journalist and a member of any political party.

According to an Iranian journalist who asked remain anonymous, political activists are often beaten under vague and ambiguous costs. But he described Area’s lashing insulting the president as "shocking and unprecedented."

The incident weeks after Somayeh Tohidlou, a doctoral student in sociology at Tehran University and advocate for the former presidential candidate Mir Hussein Mosaic , was beaten 50 times in an attempt to humiliate her.

Russia: Historian on trial for violating privacy laws

Russia Mikhail Sup run, a historian specializing in the lives of ethnic Germans in the Soviet Union era, is accused of violating privacy laws following the publication of his research. But his continuing trial in the northwestern city of Arkhangelsk show inconsistencies, Radio Free Europe reported on 18 October.

With Nadezhda Shalygina, a graduate student at Poor University in Arkhangelsk, Sup run undertake research four years ago on the fate of ethnic Germans deported from Crimea and the region Volga during the Second World War as enemies of the Soviet people to labor armies 'in the north of Russia.

As part of the study, a number of ethnic Germans deported were identified and their personal history investigation. After two years of research, 20% of those deported in the region Arkhangelsk was successfully identified.

The research is published in the book of Memory, supported by the German Red Cross.

But following complaints from relatives of the deported individuals identified, Sup run was accused illegally revealing personal information and charged with violating Article 137 of the Criminal Code.

His trial began behind closed doors earlier this month.

A lawyer reported that the plaintiffs unclear and sometimes contradictory evidence when questioned by the court.

Some of them declared they were contacted by officials of the Federal Security Services and asked to fill in complaints. Others said they did not prove in fact written complaints despite the court.

The lawyer said the investigator in the case insisted Sup run charged revealing state secrets, as documents with detailed information on the activities of Russia's intelligence services were found in his personal archive in the investigation. But the prosecutor's office refused to charge it to add to the lawsuit.

The issue of deportation of ethnic Germans during the Second World War remains sensitive in Russia since up to a third of the population believed to have died on the road or in exile.

UAE: University encouraged to condemn persecution lecturer

In the UAE Nasser bin Gait, a lecturer at Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University, was arrested on charges since April abusive ruling officials, despite the procedural irregularities in his trial and the violation of his defense rights. The university must break its silence and persecution of his employee's condemned, Human Rights Watch urged on 13 October.

Bin Gait, a lecturer in international law at Sorbonne economics Abu Dhabi University since 2009, was arrested on 9 April, just days before he was due to complete his course.

His family home in Dubai were searched by the security forces and computers, documents and personal videos confiscated.

Together with four others - bloggers and online activists - bin Gait is charged insulting ruling officials through an internet forum. He is accused specifically writing an article in which the crown prince.

Since his detention in al-Watchband prison his family and lawyers the target of a harassment campaign by the authorities and the media.

Human rights organizations argue that bin Gait’s prosecution is unfounded and politically motivated and called for his unconditional release.

Despite these allegations, and his non-violent charges, the Supreme Court refused to release him. His case is under state security procedures, its basic defense rights placed limited.

He recently reported that prison staff encouraged other prisoners harass him, which led to his being chained in solitary confinement after an altercation with a prisoner in August.

Since bin Gait’s arrest, and Paris-Sorbonne University and its partner Emirati Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University refused to condemn the Emirati authorities.

The university has also distanced himself from his employer, to identify him as an "external lecturer". Georges Moline, the Paris-Sorbonne University vice-chancellor declared that bin Gait’s prosecution was independent of his academic position and that no official comments can be made on his case.

Human Rights Watch reminded Sorbonne University that peaceful freedom of expression is one of the core values ​​and has called on the university condemned in public the detention and trial of bin Gait.

The organization said Sorbonne's response will indicate whether it has decided to support liberal education values ​​or to ignore the oppression of these same values ​​by the UAE authorities.

Sorbonne Abu Dhabi University and Paris-Sorbonne University is officially independent but part near the administrative and financial ties with the French university received 15% of the income of the student fee Emirati university.

CYPRUS: The municipality bow to political pressure?

A former rector of the University of Cyprus an open letter accusing the municipality of Famagusta of interference in his freedom of expression to the cancellation of a lecture written on July 11 naval base explosion, the Cyprus Mail reported on 13 October.

Academic Stavros Zanies accused Famagusta municipality in cancel his lecture scheduled for November 7, from bow to pressure from political groups on the municipal council.

He also said the municipality had asked him on several occasions to the topic of his lecture, which he argued violated change its freedom of expression.

The lecture was supposed to discuss three aspects of the July 11 naval base explosion: the reasons behind the incident, imagine a "new Cyprus and how changes could be introduced in the country following the tragedy.

On July 11, about 100 containers filled with explosives self-detonated at the Evangels Flora is naval base near Ziti killing 13 people and injuring 62. The incident has serious economic and political consequences, including calls from academics and politicians for President Demetrius Christofis to resign after was responsible for the explosion occurred.

But Famagusta Mayor Alexis Galan’s account Zanies letter misleading.

According Galan’s, the reading was just postponed to another date to be confirmed later, and was asked to Zanies an economic perspective to include. Galan’s is going to answer the letter's academic.

India: Delhi University row over controversial essay

In India, a passionate debate erupted in Delhi on whether Delhi University must write an essay about the controversial Hindu epic, the Ramayana, in its curriculum, the BBC reported on 18 October.

The university has recently decided to set up entitled, "Three hundred Ramayana’s: Five examples and three thoughts on translation" removed from his history courses.

This decision was taken by the academic council of the university, which is in charge of syllabus, despite a recommendation by an expert committee appointed by the Supreme Court to keep the article in the curriculum.

The essay, written by the well-known scholar AK Rumanian, is included in Delhi University's history courses since 2006 Hindu extremist groups have protested against the inclusion.

The essay depicting 300 accounts of the Ramayana from India and other countries in Asia and includes versions of the Ramayana which indicates that Lord Ram and Site were siblings and the Devil King Ravenna was Seta’s father.

Final groups who wrote the most popular version by Hindu sage Valrico follow judge setting insulting the Hindu faith. In the main story, Lord Ram and Site formed a perfect couple and Ravenna was her kidnapper against whom Lord Ram had to fight to save his wife.

The university's history department condemned the decision to drop the preparation of the list of teaching and lamented the fact that the institution more concerned about political pressure as the assurance of academic freedom.

The history department's Professor Sunil Kumar stated that they intended to write a letter to restore the academic council to ask for the setting.

Malaysia: Students protest suspension Dons

Student leaders plan to grievances about the lack of academic freedom Datum Seri Prime Minister Naïf Raze Ton next week, The Star reported on 21 October.

Solidarity Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM) chairman Ahmad Sucre Abs Raze said the group planned to hand over a memorandum to the Prime Minister during an expected visit to the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) next week.

He said a press conference that academics in Malaysia's universities "should be given the space for critical thinking and debate."

The SMM was a demonstration at the IIUM mosque, calling for the restoration of law lecturer Professor Dr. Abdul-Aziz Bari. Ahmad Sucre claimed four students were arrested and the group further action next week will take the university to do something.

The university suspended and issued a show cause letter to the professor allegedly making controversial statements against the Sultan of Selangor, The Star reported in another article. He believes that Sultan Sharafuddin Iris Shah's intervention in a church raid controversy was "unusual and inconsistent".

IIUM Abdul Aziz a week to explain why action should be taken against him. Meanwhile, he is barred from visiting the campus without permission of the Dean.

* Noemi Boot is a program officer at the Network for Education and Academic Rights hand, a non-profit organization that facilitates the rapid global transfer of accurate information in response to violations of academic freedom and human rights in education.