Academic freedom under Israeli military occupation

Oct 1, 1984

Report of WUS/ICJ mission of enquiry into higher education in the West Bank and Gaza

“The International Commission o f Jurists and the UK Committee o f the World University Service arranged in 1983 an independent mission to the West Bank and Gaza to enquire into the persistent problems faced by the Palestinian institutions of higher education in their relations with the Israeli military authorities in the occupied territories. As sponsoring organisations our concern, as expressed in the term s of reference, was to examine ‘the extent to which the academic freedom of these institutions is affected by the military occupation and, in particular, by the
military orders introduced by the occupation authorities’. The concept o f academic freedom of institutions of higher education is nowhere authoritatively defined. The authors o f this report have rendered a signal service in bringing together the various norms of international law relevant to the subject, and have been guided by them in examining the question of academic freedom in the Israeli occupied territories.”

The report contains:

1. Terms of Reference
2. Basic Facts and Figures
3. An Approach to the Problems
4. The Occupied Territories: Historical and Legal Framework
5. A View of the Universities
6. The Problems Regarding Academic Freedom
7. Conclusions and Recommendations

Appendix I: Israeli Legal Statement
Appendix II: Select List o f Sources

Palestinian Territory-academic freedom-fact-finding report-1984-eng (full text in English, PDF)