British-Indian partnerships formed on Cameron’s visit
Universities UK, an advocacy group that represents the interests of British academic institutions, has backed the education partnerships announced by Prime Minister David Cameron during a British trade mission to India last week, when representatives from both countries’ education sectors met.
“We are delighted that the prime minister articulated so clearly that there is no limit on the number of Indian students wishing to study in the U.K. and that there are work opportunities following graduation,” Joanna Newman, a Universities UK representative, wrote in an e-mail from the sidelines of the government trip to India. “It is very important to the sector to welcome international students.”
Britain’s student immigrant policy has been criticized as being too stringent, especially after one university lost its right to host non-E.U. students.
Dr. Newman said that one main initiative involved the use of British MOOCs, or massive open online courses, as well as free content provided by British universities and the British Library.
According to a British government statement, new agreements include a training program by the British Council, which is forecast to produce 1.5 million teachers in India by 2017; scholarships by the London School of Economics for postgraduate Indian students; and a partnership between Cambridge and the Indian government to establish a Center for Chemical Biology and Therapeutics.
— JOYCE LAU AND CALVIN YANG
Anti-fascism group defends demonstration at Cambridge
Unite Against Fascism, an activist group, is standing by its decision to organize a demonstration against the French politician Marine Le Pen at the University of Cambridge last week.
“We do not think that prestigious universities like Cambridge should give publicity to fascists, especially at a time when there is an economic crisis in Europe,” Sabby Dhalu, the group’s joint secretary, said by telephone. “We called a protest because we did not agree with the decision to invite her to give a speech.”
Ms. Le Pen, who took over leadership of the French far-right National Front from her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, was invited by the Cambridge Union Society to speak last Tuesday. Her appearance drew about 200 protesters, the British news media reported.
The Union Society has courted controversy in the past. An appearance last year by Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former International Monetary Fund chief accused of sexual misconduct, drew protests. A planned talk last year by the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange drew criticism and was ultimately canceled for what the Union called technical reasons.
— CALVIN YANG
Vigil for rape victims held at University of Cape Town
As the case of the athlete Oscar Pistorius continues to captivate South Africa, thousands of students, staff members and faculty demonstrated at the University of Cape Town last week against violence against women.
According to a university statement, the protest, followed by a nighttime vigil, was in response to two recent cases in which rape victims died of their injuries in Cape Town. According to local news reports, Anene Booysen, 17, was found disemboweled on Feb. 2 and died the same day; on Feb. 9, Ge-Audrey Green, 19, was found dead in her home.
“We want to say directly to those in authority that we feel you are failing us,” Max Price, the vice chancellor, said to protesters, according to a statement.
— JOYCE LAU
