Against boycott. Ernstad
Norwegian university considers boycotting Israel
Board of directors of Norwegian University of Science and Technology to decide on November 12 whether or not to declare academic boycott against Israel. Chairwoman says opposes move
The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), the second largest in the Scandinavian country, is expected to decide next Thursday whether or not to declare an academic boycott against Israel.
The university's board will meet on November 12 to decide on the matter.
In 2007 the British Association of University Teachers considered boycotting Bar-Ilan and Haifa universities.
The decision to ban the two universities, which was eventually reversed, was premised on the claim that Haifa University limits academic freedom when it comes to research that criticizes Israeli policies, while Bar-Ilan was slammed for operating an affiliated college in the West Bank settlement of Ariel.
Merit Ernstad, who chairs the board of directors, told Ynet that despite her opposition to the move, she would not work to cancel the meeting, adding that those who called for the boycott could not be defined as pro-Palestinian or left-wing.
Rector Torbjørn Digernes stressed that the university's management did not initiate the debate on a possible boycott.
