Lander: Petition against Technion ‘ludicrous’
THE Technion Society of Australia’s executive director has described an online petition that accuses the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) of being “uniquely and directly implicated in war crimes” as ludicrous.
THE Technion Society of Australia’s executive director has described an online petition that accuses the Israel Institute of Technology (Technion) of being “uniquely and directly implicated in war crimes” as ludicrous.
The petition, which was started by former University of Sydney (USYD) student Suzanne Asad, demands that USYD vice-chancellor Dr Michael Spence establish a policy to end all academic, research and student-exchange relationships with the Technion in Israel.
It states that a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel is neither extreme nor radical because it claims “Israel is a state that systematically defies international law”.
The petition has been signed by Associate Professor Jake Lynch at USYD’s Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, who was recently rebuked by his own university for publicly snubbing an Israeli academic, and former Marrickville mayor Fiona Byrne, who failed in an attempt to have her council institute a policy supporting BDS.
Technion Society of Australia executive director Ken Lander said the petition is ludicrous because most of the world’s leading universities “are actively engaged in supporting research that assists in self-defence, homeland security and the battle with terrorism”.
“The Technion’s contribution to humanity, recognised throughout the world, is manifestly evident,” Lander said.
“We urge all people not to simply comment to friends, but to demonstrate their support for the Technion and the principled stance taken by leading universities throughout Australia by joining the Technion Society of Australia.
“This is a tangible way of saying as individuals that we recognise the tremendous contribution of the Technion.”
He said that research into cancer and degenerative diseases, the bionic nose and other high-profile discoveries have been made at the Technion.
“The awarding of a third Nobel Prize [to a Technion faculty member] in 2011 to Distinguished Professor Dan Shechtman for the discovery of quasicrystals, and the naming by the City of New York of the Technion as the winner of an international competition of the world’s top universities re-affirm the Technion’s continuing contribution beyond its own campus.”
JOSHUA LEVI
TSA president Ken Lander.
comments