Union challenges court’s rejection of autonomy proposal

A dispute is raging between higher education and research union SECES and the Madagascan Constitutional High Court over the court’s rejection of the union’s proposed legislation for university autonomy which the court has ruled unconstitutional.

The union said it would continue a strike that had already lasted two weeks, until educational, financial and administrative autonomy for universities was enacted, reported L’Express de Madagascar.

But the court’s president, Florent Rakotoarisoa, said: “Several articles of this bill are unconstitutional. Because of this, we cannot validate it,” reported L’Express.

“This draft bill gives to university presidents an exceptional and exclusive power for maintenance of public order within the education area and university premises. This violates the provisions of Article 65 of the constitution, which entrusts these duties to the prime minister,” said Rakotoarisoa.

He also said impunity for teachers and researchers was inadmissible, reported L’Express, which explained that, under the bill, they would be immune from legal action arising from the education they dispensed and research they carried out or published in accordance with rules of ethics and deontology.

In its judgment, the court ruled that would go against basic law which, it said, must be the same for everyone. “Given that jurisdictional immunity amounts to an exemption to the principle of equality for all before the law, it must be provided for by a constitutional provision.”

SECES condemned the court’s rejection of the draft bill, and challenged its decisions point by point, reported Midimadagasikara.

A union member told the paper the court seemed “to have forgotten that the SECES brings together eminent professors of constitutional law. This bill has been drawn up by qualified people”.

On the matter of academics’ impunity, SECES responded: “This is not the first such proposal on the issue, given that it is included in the code of communication to protect journalists against potential legal, arbitrary and political proceedings”; and it pointed out a constitutional provision protecting members of parliament and senators.

SECES accused the court of making a “purely and simply political” decision which “does not seek to support the development of public universities which guarantee the development of Madagascar, as in all other countries.

“On the contrary, it is easy to interpret the intention as being to damage those which are, furthermore, the only way the people can reach knowledge and understanding and so aspire to better standards of life,” reported Midimadagasikara.

“This political decision of the constitutional high court can only add significantly to the breakdown of social harmony within the public universities and continue to maintain pockets of social tension there,” the union said. — Compiled by Jane Marshall.

This article is drawn from local media. University World News cannot vouch for the accuracy of the original reports.