The Dean of the Kingdom of Tonga’s University at ‘Atenisi Institute, Dr Michael Horowitz, has contacted TEU requesting support regarding issues of constraints on academic freedom at the University.

Since its inception in 1963, the University at ‘Atenisi Institute has championed democracy, secularism, a Hellenic curriculum (philosophy, history, literature, theatre, music), and human rights including the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, and the LGBT community. In 2010, in response to this curriculum, the Tongan Accreditation Board refused to register the University, which Tonga’s Supreme Court later, in 2011, deemed to be unlawful.

More recently, in 2018, the Tongan Accreditation Board banned the University from engaging in student recruitment, which was again deemed unlawful by the Tongan Supreme Court in 2019. However, due to the actions of the Tongan Accreditation Board, the University at ‘Atenisi Institute’s Dean of Faculty Professor Gonschor resigned out of concern the situation would have undesirable consequences for his academic career.

In March 2020, Tonga’s Court of Appeal opened the way for the University at ‘Atenisi Institute to sue the Tongan Accreditation Board for damages, and the University has now requested support from TEU in the form of an affidavit assessing the impact of constraints on academic freedom on the University.

The Tertiary Education Union | Te Hautū Kahurangi o Aotearoa champions the vital importance of protecting academic freedom and the right of academics to conduct research and disseminate and publish the results here in Aotearoa, across the Pacific region, and worldwide. According to TEU Tumu Whakarae Dr Michael Gilchrist,

“Academic freedom is a cornerstone of both a healthy democracy and a vibrant tertiary education sector. It’s vital the TEU, our members, and tertiary education staff, stand in solidarity with our colleagues whenever that freedom is not upheld, particularly at home and in the Pacific region”.