Solidarity with ‘Palestine’ is threatening research funding at some South African universities.
Minister of International Affairs and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor, said that several universities could lose funding after cutting ties with Israeli institutions and urged the South African government to offer financial support.
In an address at the Science Forum South Africa on 4 December, Pandor said the sector was not immune to the impact of the current toxic geopolitical environment.
“South Africa’s support for the struggle for [Palestinian] sovereignty has resulted in some key research initiatives that rely on international funding facing the threat of funds being withdrawn,” she said.
“This is reportedly happening to universities that have decided not to pursue links with institutions in Israel that have links to the military actions in Palestine,” Pandor added.
Pandor said the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) must give attention to the likely impact of such a withdrawal of funds on institutions and researchers, and support them in identifying alternative resources.
The DSTI co-hosted the Science Forum with the Science Diplomacy Capital for Africa (SDCfA) initiative, with the theme, “Igniting Conversations about Science – Innovation and Science for Humanity”.
Universities South Africa (USAf), the country’s representative body for 26 vice-chancellors at public institutions, confirmed that at least one university has experienced funding cuts over its stance on Gaza, without elaborating.
Salim Vally, a professor of Education at the University of Johannesburg, said that any donors threatening to withdraw funds were indulging in academic blackmail.
“Universities must not be deterred and should remain true to their mission, which must be an ethical commitment to seeking the truth, social justice, human rights, anti-racism, solidarity and knowledge that benefits humanity,” he told SciDev.Net.
“This is one of the ideals of knowledge for the public good.”
He described as “cowardice” the refusal of some universities to take a stand against Israel and applauded Pandor’s attempts to mitigate any loss of funding from those that do.