Letter from 8000 Student Activists to Rouhani: Issues in Higher Education Have Reached a Warning Point

More than 8000 student activists criticized what they called "pressure on student organizations and publications and the silence of officials from the Ministry of Science" and stated that "the problems and crises of higher education institutions, like many other areas in the country, have reached a warning point." In a letter published by the ILNA news agency, these student activists urged Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, to appoint someone as the Minister of Science who would "stand against pressures and not consider the integrity of the university as a negotiable matter." According to the signatories of this letter, during Rouhani's administration, "many programs and speeches were canceled for various reasons, and a large number of student activists were summoned." The letter states that the Minister of Science and his deputies "did not once respond decisively to these trends," and university presidents "in most cases" echoed these actions. The student activists also pointed to the deprivation of several students from education and demanded that "with the presence of brave, capable, and powerful managers in the positions of university presidents, the file of unrelated interventions in universities be closed." Previously, various student organizations and some members of parliament had criticized the ongoing security atmosphere in universities. For instance, in April of this year, 72 Islamic Student Associations issued a statement about the summoning of 50 student activists to judicial authorities and the suspension of seven Islamic associations, criticizing the "pressure and restrictions" on student activities by entities inside and outside the university. Additionally, 92 student organizations in August of last year wrote a letter to the President of Iran criticizing the continuation of the "climate of intimidation and threat" and the "security" atmosphere in universities, protesting the cancellation of student organization programs and "illegal and extralegal interventions" in their conduct. In February 2016, 813 student publication activists had also written to Hassan Rouhani, asking him to issue a "decisive order" to higher education managers to prevent the "growing trend of illegal actions" against these publications. Meanwhile, the 8000 student activists signing this letter stated that in some universities, "critics are generally not granted publication licenses, and in others, publications are reviewed before publication." The letter also emphasized that "what has happened to the university in recent years is nothing but a policy of moving towards the passivity and isolation of students and the university." These student activists also stressed the "long-standing demand" of student activists and some professors for "the independence of universities" and called for the election of university presidents and managers by university members and the prevention of "interference from entities that have no roots in the university." The criticisms and demands have been raised at a time when Hassan Rouhani, in the days leading up to the presidential election on May 29 of this year and during his first term, repeatedly announced his support for the political and cultural activities of students and promised that his government would work to distance universities from the "security atmosphere." He even stated on April 21 of this year in a press conference that under his government, the atmosphere in high schools and universities has become "less security-oriented." The activities of student organizations and the issuance of permits for some new organizations were among the reasons for the impeachment and dismissal of Reza Faraji Dana, the former Minister of Science, in August 2014, after which Mohammad Farhadi was introduced as the Minister of Science. Meanwhile, Mohammad Farhadi's management in the Ministry of Science has faced criticisms, and some reformist representatives in parliament had previously criticized his "passive" actions.