On May 4, Isabelle Poupart, Canadian Ambassador to Hungary, Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, issued the following statement regarding recent amendments to Hungary’s 2011 law on national higher education:
“Canada is seriously concerned by amendments that stand to endanger academic freedom in Hungary and the operations of the Central European University [CEU]. While we welcome the commitment of Hungarian leaders on Saturday to engage about amendments to the education law, we urge them to quickly move from words to meaningful action.
“In Hungary and abroad we have witnessed strong and sustained mobilization in support of academic freedom and the CEU. In Canada, academics and educational institutions such as the University of Alberta, University of Quebec in Montréal, University of Toronto, Western University, and the Canadian Association of University Teachers, have expressed their concern for the future of the CEU. As a long-time friend and ally of Hungary, Canada encourages a constructive dialogue that could pave the way for a timely and effective resolution of this issue.
“The CEU is an institution of great international repute and includes a number of Canadian students and faculty in its academic community, comprising people from 130 nations. Canada strongly supports the essential role that universities, NGOs and a free press play in fostering open, prosperous, inclusive and democratic societies.”
To see the statement on the Canadian government's website, click here.
