The cancellation of a symposium to discuss the Charlie Hebdo massacre, arranged by Queen’s University, sends out “a confused and regrettable message about free speech”, according to the Conservative Party’s East Belfast Westminster candidate, Neil Wilson. QUB’s vice chancellor, Professor Patrick Johnston, who took the decision, cited fears about a security risk for delegates and concerns about the university’s reputation.
“This is an unfortunate move and I think Queen’s University’s management should make a public response to criticisms of its stance”, Neil said. “We’re talking here about a group of academics and journalists, discussing an important issue in a sober and sensible fashion. This is precisely what universities should be doing and it’s very worrying that the event has been cancelled because of unspecified security risks. We should be concerned about the repercussions for free speech in our institutions of higher education.”
“Neither can I understand how a ‘university’s reputation’ could be damaged by discussing recent events freely and frankly. It’s important that Queen’s gives a fuller explanation for its decision to cancel this event. We simply cannot allow fear of extremists to shape what we can and cannot discuss in our universities, or the values that we hold as a society. I’d call upon QUB either to reschedule this symposium or to provide a more detailed explanation of the security threats which prompted the event to be cancelled. Otherwise it is a bad day for academic freedom and freedom of speech at Northern Ireland’s biggest university.”