Politics
America threatens to cut ties with Belgium’s Ghent University following Cofnas’ suspension
The suspension of Nathan Cofnas, the white Researcher at the center of the alleged racial death of a former black Professor, Jason Arday, the United States of America has termed Ghent University’s action taken against the researcher as unwarranted and means to
Picture: Zambian Observer
America threatens to cut ties with Belgium’s Ghent University following Cofnas’ suspension
Following the suspension of Nathan Cofnas, the white Researcher at the center of the alleged racial death of a former black Professor, Jason Arday, the United States of America has termed Ghent University’s action taken against the researcher as unwarranted and means to reward scapegoating mob behavior.
According to a statement issued by the US’ Ambassador to Belgium, Bill White, America will cut off its support for Ghent University.
The statement explained that the American scholar skillfully delivered his job to accurately blow the whistle against academic fraud and did not deserve any suspension.
“The United States Mission to Belgium condemns, in the strongest terms, Ghent University’s retaliation against an American scholar following his accurate whistleblower reporting on academic fraud,” it said
The statement further supported Cofnas and condemned Ghent University for the drastic action taken against Cofnas without putting into consideration the rationale behind Cofnas’ honest work and threatened to review America’s support for Ghent University.
“The United States government regularly funds and supports research, academic exchanges, and other engagements with overseas universities. Dishonest, corrupt institutions that engage in, or reward, scapegoating mob behavior are not desirable partners for us. This is particularly true where the purpose and effect of the scapegoating is to punish accurate journalism unearthing academic dishonesty. We are therefore reviewing any relationships we have with Ghent University,” it said.
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The statement further indicated that Ghent University was fully aware of Cofnas’ ideologies before employing him and insisted that he believed in freedom of speech in order to overturn lies, fraud, and false ideologies, something Ghent University even wanted to silence him.
“Bad-faith idealogues will try to make this a referendum on the content of Cofnas’s scholarship – or polemical distortions of it. That’s wrong. Free speech means that controversial views are protected. And Cofnas’s views were known to Ghent University when he was hired.
The ultimate purpose of freedom of speech is to overturn lies, fraud, and false ideologies. This is precisely what Cofnas was doing, and precisely the reason his home institution wants to silence him,” the statement added.
Source: Zambian Observer — Read more
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