Limited scope of academic freedom probe worries academics

Academics in Sweden have welcomed a government investigation aimed at strengthening academic freedom but argue the probe fails to take account of threats to academic freedom from the political establishment itself – threats that call for academic freedom to be enshrined in the constitution.

In a press release dated 24 April, Minister for Education and Research Johan Pehrson announced that Professor Anna-Sara Lind of Uppsala University has been appointed to lead the investigation which will assess whether the current regulatory framework is appropriate for protection of the individual academic freedom of researchers and teachers at Swedish universities and colleges and how to strengthen support for researchers and teachers in matters concerning their academic freedom. It will also submit any legislative proposals deemed necessary.

An eye on the United States

The press release noted that the investigation comes against the background of the deterioration of academic freedom around the world, making specific mention of the United States, where it stated that the situation “is worrisome”.

“In Sweden too, the climate for discussion has become harsher and more polarised, with four out of 10 university employees reporting that they have been subjected to threats or harassment. It is more important than ever to ensure adequate protection of the individual academic freedom of researchers and teachers in Sweden,” it stated.

In a presentation made at the press briefing on 24 April, Pehrson, who has since indicated that he will step down as Liberal Party chair on 24 June, said Sweden would stand up for academic freedom where other countries are dismantling it.

“Here, scientists shall be allowed to be free, curious and a little troublesome. In this way we will have research and education which is world-class, so we are guarding an open climate for debate,” Pehrson said.

Facts versus opinions

Swedish academics are not convinced, however. In an op-ed published in Dagens Nyheter (DN) on 25 April, over 1,000 scientists put their names to an article in major Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter under the headline “Our research cannot be dismissed as opinions”, in which it was argued that the same tendencies to disregard facts and scientific findings that do not suit politics that are showing themselves in the US are also visible in Sweden.

“Recently, we have repeatedly seen how politicians misuse research results or ignore scientific knowledge to support their political agenda. We, 1,047 researchers from more than 30 universities and many academic disciplines, protest against this development.

“We would like to emphasise strongly that the role of science as a bearer of knowledge is more important than ever in the multiple crises we find ourselves in,” the article stated.

Referring to examples where research in fields such as climate science, criminology and nuclear energy has been ignored by politicians, the scientists say that ignoring research-based facts and dismissing scientific findings as “opinions” undermines the foundation of a democratic and sustainable society.

“Political decisions and priorities must rest on a correct and scientifically based factual basis in order for us to be able to deal with the major and complex challenges we face.

“In the United States, science is being questioned, and the freedom of research is being deliberately undermined by the ruling politicians, a development that we are horrified by. It is almost unbearable to see how knowledge institutions are dismantled and democracy threatened.

“But Sweden is not the United States – we have a long history of strong trust in knowledge and science. Politicians need to safeguard this trust by strengthening the position of science, making decisions based on facts and safeguarding knowledge and popular education," the petition said.

Constitutional protection

The petition was published a day after a press release on 24 April from the Swedish Association of University Researchers and Teachers (SULF), which criticised the government’s probe because it does not consider in its mandate the issue of how actions of politicians might influence academic freedom.

“A shortcoming in the mandate for the investigation is that the question on how to protect academic freedom from inappropriate political interference is not included,” said SULF chair Sanna Wolk.

“It is a disadvantage that the government is not taking responsibility for the threat the politicians themselves are making. The education minister himself is referring to American scientists seeking to get away from political clumsiness, but we cannot see how the investigation is addressing the risk of the same problem occurring in Sweden.

“To protect against such development here, we need changes now. One such change is to strengthen academic freedom in the constitution,” Wolk said.

The need for constitutional protection of academic freedom was also highlighted by the Union of Professionals (Akademikerförbundet SSR), which has 80,000 social scientists and social workers as its members.

“The government should ensure that the Harvard [University] fiasco does not happen here,” it said in its own statement in response to the government’s investigation.

While it welcomed the investigation into academic freedom, the union said: “Resistance to facts, political control and Trump’s Harvard fiasco are only some examples that [show] a stronger protection of academic freedom is needed that will withstand an increasingly polarised social climate.

“Academic freedom is related to both freedom for research and freedom for education. The first is regulated by the constitution; the second is not. A knowledge society is founded on both research and education being free.”

‘Bad governments in the future’

Assistant professor at Uppsala University Sigrid Schottenius Cullhed, representing the Young Academy of Sweden, told University World News the government’s initiative to strengthen academic freedom in Sweden was welcomed, but academic work “must also be protected from undue political influence, short-term funding priorities, and instrumentalisation.

“Academic freedom – including in teaching – should be explicitly safeguarded as a democratic right in the constitution”.

On the issue of whether disregard for research is driving the erosion of academic freedoms, Professor Pernilla Wittung-Stafshede, former chair of the leadership group of Genie, a gender equality initiative at Chalmers University of Technology, said that the government’s efforts lack the “possibility to go in and change the ‘grundlag’ or constitutional law”, which is the outcome that many researchers and universities believe is needed to protect universities and scientists from political interference.

“To me, this initiative will result in a report that will not make a difference. A real difference would be to protect academic freedom in the constitution,” she stated.

“What the 1,000+ scientists write about is a real problem about how we use – or do not use – scientific data to guide decisions. The government should rely on data for important decisions around climate, nature, crime, or whatever … They have dismissed scientific facts and the resulting advice as opinions one can ignore,” she said.

“It is an increasing trend in society to discard facts for our own ‘opinions’. People are starting to accept more and more that it’s OK to have any opinion you want. Thus, science and facts are losing their stronghold in general in society.

“This is really scary, and the government should not follow this trend. Then we lose trust in the government. But they seem to do so more and more according to the DN [petition].

“This is really bad in itself. Also, with a government that does not care much about science, the first issue of protecting academic freedom in the constitution becomes even more important. If not, we may easily become like the US.

“If bad governments come in the future, things like those happening in the US can happen in Sweden too,” Wittung- Stafshede said.

Research cuts, student exclusion

Laila Abdallah, a policy analyst at the Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations (with 960,000 members), told University World News that while political influence posed a threat, so did “the fact that direct funding (basic grants) for researchers and teachers has been eroded over the years.

The government’s choice to expose research funds to even more competition in the latest research bill hardly helps to secure academic freedom”.

She noted: “This, together with insecure employment forms, poorer pay conditions and working environments, is something the investigation should highlight.

“Furthermore, this inquiry should also consider that the organisational form of the higher education institutions will be investigated in parallel. It is not only the academic freedom of teachers and researchers that needs to be strengthened, but also universities and university colleges as institutions in our society.”

Rasmus Lindstedt, president of the Swedish National Union of Students (SFS), told University World News that the union was also “disappointed” that the inquiry does not take a broader approach to academic freedom.

“From a student perspective, it’s clear that some of the most pressing threats have been overlooked,” he said.

“Academic freedom isn’t only about the conditions for researchers and teachers – it must also include students. Students need to be able to ask uncomfortable questions, organise collectively and take part in shaping their education without fearing sanctions or limitations. Without that perspective, the picture is incomplete,” he noted.

Threats to democracy

Professor Emeritus Ole Petter Ottersen, former rector of the University of Oslo and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, told University World News that the “most important thing” is that politicians understand the “essentiality of academic freedom for societal development, for democracy, and not least – for politics to be evidence-based”.

He said academic freedom should ensure that politicians have the best possible map with which to navigate.

“All the reefs and rocks in the sea must be duly charted, even if this can be seen as ‘troublesome’ for political decision-makers. Academia should be a watchdog and be able to speak out against the government when it is heading for troubled waters,” he added.

“I have said it multiple times, and I will say it again: better legal protection of academic freedom should be a top priority in a world where democracy is eroding and authoritarianism is growing. Academic freedom is not a right for the few but an insurance for us all,” he noted.