Academic freedom wrangle - Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika has said there should be a round-table discussion involving concerned parties in the current academic freedom wrangle between authorities and university lecturers. Mutharika said this at a closed-door meeting he held with student leaders from Chancellor College and the Polytechnic, two constituent colleges of the University of Malawi at the centre of the stand-off. 'We lodged a formal complaint that, while we appreciate that he has commissioned an inquiry into the issue, history shows that there are no specific time frame for commissions of inquiry to report on their finding so we proposed an interim solution be found and the president agreed,' said Chancellor College Students Union President, Lonjezo Sithole, in an interview with PANA Wednesday.

Sithole said Mutharika promised that the roundtable talks, involving himself, Inspector General of Police Peter Mukhito and the lecturers, would be held 'very soon', adding that civil society groups, like the Malawi Law Society, would be part of the meeting.

'I must say our meeting with the president was held in a friendly environment, there was no intimidation, it exceeded our expectations,' said Sithole when asked how the meeting with Mutharika, known for his banging of tables when angry, went.

Lecturers at the Zomba-based Chancellor College started boycotting classes from 16 February, four days after Mukhito summoned Associate Political Science Professor Blessings Chinsinga over a classroom example he gave a public policy class.

Chinsinga had reportedly said insurrections that toppled governments in Tunisia and Egypt were sparked by crises like Malawi's persistent fuel and foreign exchange reserve shortages.

The lecturers are demanding an apology and assurances of academic freedom from the police chief but President Mutharika, who is both Commander-in-Chief of the Malawi Police Service and Chancellor of the University of Malawi, backed Mukhito, saying the police chief cannot apologise to lecturers 'who are teaching revolution'.

This infuriated the lecturers and the students further with the Blantyre-based Malawi Polytechnic joining the fray. Students of both colleges held street demonstrations in solidarity with their lecturers in the cities of Zomba and Blantyre leading to running battles with the police and eventual indefinite closure of the two colleges.

They remain closed to date some 105 days later.

Last Friday, the lecturers and students, joined by retired professors and religious and civil society leaders, marked 100 days of the academic freedom struggle by holding a 'red t-shirt' campaign for academic freedom with peaceful demonstrations in Zomba.

President Mutharika has, meanwhile, appointed a six-man Commission of Inquiry - headed by former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Malawi Prof. Brown Chimphamba - to investigate the cause of the current stand-off and propose measurers to avert future ones.

Sithole said the meeting agreed that the Commission of Inquiry should carry out its investigations into fundamental issues at the centre of the stand-off while the colleges are open.

He, nonetheless, said the student leaders emphasised on the need for academic freedom. He said the president showed 'some reluctance' to discuss issues of academic freedom.

'We said we need academic freedom but he has his own views on this,' he said. 'We suggested we should discuss in terms of assurance and brainstorm the fundamental things.'

Sithole said the students emphasised that they did not want to be held to ransom by the wrangle involving the police chief and the lecturers.

'The president agreed that the roundtable discussions be held soon to find a way to re-open the two colleges,' he said.

The student delegation to the meeting included Sithole, Chancellor College Students Union vice-president Chisomo Nsadala, student speaker Francis Kaduya and his deputy Goodwell Thunga.

From the Polytechnic there were Polytechnic Student Union president Evance Mora, his deputy Victor Mandiwe and general secretary Robert Mgala. Tapiwa Banda represented the University of Malawi Students Union in the delegation.

The president was joined by his brother, Edcation Minister Prof. Peter Mutharika, Secretary to the Malawi Government Bright Nsaka and deputy Presidential Affairs Minister, Nicholas Dausi.

The younger Mutharika, who drew ire of the students 'for doing nothing', told the meeting he was working 'behind the scenes' to resolve the impasse.

'He told us he has been conducting informal dialogue with the lecturers on the issue,' said Sithole.

Pana 03/06/2011