{"id":7060,"date":"2020-09-25T15:10:06","date_gmt":"2020-09-25T13:10:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/snspa.ro\/en\/?p=7060"},"modified":"2020-09-25T15:35:01","modified_gmt":"2020-09-25T13:35:01","slug":"unprecedented-national-and-international-solidarity-to-protect-the-academic-freedom-and-the-freedom-of-thought-in-romania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snspa.ro\/en\/unprecedented-national-and-international-solidarity-to-protect-the-academic-freedom-and-the-freedom-of-thought-in-romania\/","title":{"rendered":"Unprecedented national and international solidarity to protect the academic freedom and the freedom of thought in Romania"},"content":{"rendered":"

The National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA), Bucharest, together with the West University of Timi\u0219oara, with the backing of other major universities, academics and researchers from Romania and around the world \u2013 gathering an impressive number of 885 supporters<\/strong> \u2013 submitted to the Romanian Constitutional Court a legal point of view, a \u201cfriend of the court\u201d, Amicus Curiae, in relation to the modified Law of education which forbids institutions to discuss gender issues<\/strong>. Amicus Curiae was elaborated in support of the Notice of unconstitutionality on Law no. 87\/2020 for the amendment of art.7 of the National Education Law no.1 \/ 2011, which the President of Romania formulated on July 10, 2020, and was submitted on Thursday, September 24, 2020<\/p>\n

Babe\u0219-Bolyai University (UBB), Cluj-Napoca and the University of Bucharest implicitly supported SNSPA and West University of Timi\u0219oara, through their prompt reaction after the modified law was voted, in June this year.<\/p>\n

Through this Amicus Curiae, the signatory organizations and persons bring legal arguments, which demonstrate the unconstitutional character of the normative provisions proposed by the Law amending art. 7 of the National Education Law no. 1\/2011<\/strong>, but also the meaning, importance and necessity of gender studies in a democratic state<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

An impressive international support came from universities from Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia, New Zealand. Among the universities we mention just a few: Paris Sorbonne, Universit\u00e9 libre de Bruxelles, Freie Universit\u00e4t Berlin (EU), Princeton, Harvard, Yale (USA), Cambridge, King\u2019s College (UK), University of South Australia, University of Brasilia, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. The whole list of signatures is attached.<\/strong><\/p>\n

To the extent that the assault on democratic freedoms by attacking gender studies and the protection of minorities has an international dimension \u2013 part of the illiberal tendencies of recent years \u2013 we emphasize the presence in the list of world-class academics, specialists in various topics from field of study of gender: Judith Butler<\/strong> (Professor, University of California at Berkeley), Delphine Dulong<\/strong>, (Professor, University of Paris 1 Panth\u00e9on-Sorbonne, France), David Paternotte<\/strong>, (Professor, Universit\u00e9 libre de Bruxelles), Joan W. Scott<\/strong>, (Professor Emerita, Princeton, New Jersey), Mieke Verloo<\/strong> (Professor, Radboud University, Netherlands).<\/p>\n

A group of Romanian academics with research interests in the field of gender studies have actually worked on the development of gender studies in Romania and on the project of the present Amicus Curiae: Mihaela Miroiu <\/strong>(university professor, founder of the Master’s in Politics, Gender and Minorities, SNSPA), Ionela B\u0103lu\u021b\u0103 <\/strong>(university professor, founder of the Master’s Degree in Equal Opportunities Policies in Romanian and European Context, University of Bucharest), Oana B\u0103lu\u021b\u0103 <\/strong>(associate professor, University of Bucharest), M\u0103riuca Oana Constantin <\/strong>(university lecturer, SNSPA), Iustina Ionescu <\/strong>(lawyer, doctoral student SNSPA), Liliana Popescu<\/strong> (university professor, SNSPA).<\/p>\n

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On June 16, 2020, the Romanian Senate adopted the controversial bill amending the National Education Law<\/strong> and prohibiting “in units, educational institutions and all spaces intended for vocational education and training, including in units providing extracurricular education”, activities “for the spread of the theory or opinion of gender identity, understood as the theory or opinion that gender is a different concept from biological sex and that the two are not always the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

The signatory organizations and persons bring to the attention of the Constitutional Court the following:<\/p>\n

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  1. From a legal point of view<\/strong>, the Law amending art. 7 of the National Education Law no. 1\/2011:<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n