|
.
|
Our
friends from Israel alerted us about an incident that
recently transpired in England, at Oxford University,
when a 26 years old Israeli student, Amit Duvshani,
attempting to get some general information about the
Ph.D. program that is currently being offered at the
Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, part of
Oxford University, got this answer from the Oxford
University Nuffield Professor of Pathology,
Dr. Andrew Wilkie:
|
.
|
.
|
..
|
|
.
|
Original
Message -----
From: "Andrew Wilkie" <awilkie@worf.molbiol.ox.ac.uk>
To: "Amit Duvshani" <duvshani@post.tau.ac.il>
Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 9:58 AM
Subject: Re: PhD application
Dear Amit Duvshani,
Thank
you for contacting me, but I don't think this
would work. I have a huge problem with the
way that the Israelis take the moral high
ground from their appalling treatment in the
Holocaust, and then inflict gross human
rights abuses on the Palestinians because the
(the Palestinians) wish to live in their own
country.
I
am sure that you are perfectly nice at a
personal level, but no way would I take on
somebody who had served in the Israeli army.
As you may be aware, I am not the only UK
scientist with these views but I'm sure you
will find another suitable lab if you look
around.
Yours
sincerely
Andrew
Wilkie
Nuffield Professor of Pathology,
Weatherall Institute of Molecular
Medicine,
The John Radcliffe,
Headington,
Oxford OX3 9DS,
UK
.
|
.
|
|
.
|
EXHIBIT 1:
Holocaust
Survivors and Remembrance
|
.
|
This email from Dr. Wilkie, in
no time, made its way to scientists around the world and
to a number of media outlets including The New York
Times. A downpour of letters of profound disgust
began pouring over both Dr. Wilkie and his
university, prompting a quick response from Oxford with
an accompanying apology from
Dr. Wilkie:
|
.
|
.
|
..
|
|
.
|
 "Our
staff may hold strongly felt personal
opinions. Freedom of expression is a
fundamental tenet of University life, but
under no circumstances are we prepared to
accept or condone conduct that appears to, or
does, discriminate against anyone on grounds
of ethnicity or nationality, whether directly
or indirectly. This candidate is entitled to
submit an application and to have it dealt
with fairly according to our normal
criteria.
Professor
Wilkie has issued a personal apology
regarding remarks he made by e mail to an
applicant for a research degree at Oxford. An
immediate and thorough investigation of this
matter is now being carried out in accordance
with the University‚s procedures and a
report will be presented to the
Vice-Chancellor next week."
Note
to editors:
The
full text of Professor Wilkie's apology
is:
"I
recognise and apologise for any distress
caused by my email of 23 June and the
wholly inappropriate expression of my
personal opinions in that document. I was
not speaking on behalf of Oxford
University or any of its constituent
parts. I entirely accept the University of
Oxford's Equal Opportunities and Race
Equality policies."
Professor
Andrew Wilkie
Institute of Molecular Medicine
The John Radcliffe
Headington
Oxford OX3 9DS
Tel:
(44)-1865-222619
Fax: (44)-1865-222500
.
|
.
|
|
.
|
EXHIBIT 2:
Holocaust
Survivors and Remembrance
|
.
|
Over the continuing furor, on July 4, 2003, the Oxford
University expanded its response as follows:
|
.
|
.
|
..
|
|
.
|
"The
University of Oxford is appalled that any
member of its staff should have responded to
an inquiry from a potential
graduate student in
the terms in which Professor Wilkie (Nuffield
Professor of Pathology) emailed Amit Duvshani
on 23 June. A thorough
investigation began as soon as the
University became aware of this
correspondence. Based on the information that
was collected during
this process, and in the light of all the
circumstances, particularly the importance
attached by the University to
fair processes of
selection, the Vice-Chancellor,
Sir Colin Lucas, has taken the view that
this matter should be referred
for consideration by
the University's disciplinary panel for
academic staff, known as the Visitatorial
Board. While the matter is
under consideration by
the Board, Professor Wilkie will not be
taking part in the selection of any members
of staff or students. The
Visitatorial Board has power to
recommend warnings or dismissal or removal
from office.
"Visitatorial
Boards are convened to consider charges
against a member of the University's academic
staff when the
Vice-Chancellor considers that the
alleged conduct or performance of that person
may constitute good cause for dismissal
or otherwise give
grounds for some lesser disciplinary
sanction. Each Board has five members - an
external chair and four
members who are
selected randomly from an existing panel.
"Once a
member of staff has been advised that their
case is being referred to a Visitatorial
Board, they have 28 days to reply
in writing to the
charges that have been laid against them.
They are entitled to present their case to
the Board in person and to be
represented by an adviser. Following
the hearing, the Board recommends appropriate
action to the Vice-Chancellor."
Notes to editors:
The processes in the University's
Disciplinary Statute are those prescribed
by the Education Commissioners under
the provisions of
the Education Reform Act 1988. The
University's Statutes concerning
Visitatorial Boards can be found
at: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/353-051a.shtml.
Regulations concerning the operation of
Visitatorial Boards can be found
at: www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/regulations/248-062.shtml
The University does not have power to
discipline members of staff other than by
the observance of due process under
its statutes.
There is a right of appeal from any
decision to the University's Appeal Court,
which is currently made up of two High
Court judges.
The University will not comment any
further on this case as it has been
referred to the Visitatorial Board.
.
|
.
|
|
.
|
EXHIBIT 3:
Holocaust
Survivors and Remembrance
|
.
|
Upon furter consideration, Dr. Wilkie has submitted
this postscript for circulation:
|
.
|
.
|
..
|
|
.
|
Dear Editor:
Can I please make it clear that Amit
Duvshani was not an applicant for a funded
post but contacted me as a preliminary
enquiry. My stance was based on his
service in the Israeli army and the
violence that potentially entails.
I would feel uncomfortable working
closely with someone who had been through
that, which you may not respect but I hope
you can understand. The same would apply
(to a greater extent, actually) for a
palestinian terrorist (although I
haven‚t heard of one applying for a
PhD). But my email was hastily written,
clearly entirely my fault, and has been
widely misinterpreted as a lot of worse
things. I am deeply sorry about this and
retract what I said, which was caused by
too personal and emotional a response to
the terrible situation in Israel.
In addition to the official statement
(above) issued by Oxford University,
I understand that Amit's application
will be taken forward if he so wishes.
I have been in contact with him to
apologise, not just for my original email
but also for causing his name to become so
publicly prominent.
I hope you can forgive me. My stance
(which I do not retract) is anti-violence,
whether by jewish, palestinian or any
other people.
Please pass this message on if
appropriate.
Yours sincerely
Andrew Wilkie
.
|
.
|
|
.
|
EXHIBIT 4:
Holocaust
Survivors and Remembrance
|
.
|
Finally, in a last effort to get
over with this matter, Dr.Wilkie had advised Mr.Duvshani
of his willingness to reconsider the entire matter. In
his response, Mr.Duvshani had informed Dr. Wilkie that he
no longer is interested in any way or fashion to be
associated with Dr. Wilkie's Lab. As reported in the July
2, 2004 issue of The New York Times (p. A11), Mr.
Duvshani wrote back this to Dr. Willie:
|
"I really don't know if someone with such
racist views can change, but I do hope
you will reconsider and not judge all six
million of us Israelis
the same way."
|
.
Editor's
Remarks:
- 1. Mr. Duvshan is currently
completing his master's degree in molecular biology at
the University of Tel Aviv and, as all eligible
youngsters in Israel, has completed the compulsory
3-year service in the Israeli army. By extrapolation,
Dr. Wilkie is eliminating, in fact, all Jewish
students from Israel under the umbrella of his
humanitarian concerns for the Palestitians.
 2.
It is important to note the nature of Dr. Wilkie's
apologies and namely that Dr. Wilkie does not
apologies herein for his views but rather his
apologies are directed squarely on Mr. Duvshani's
feelings that may have been hurt. This differentiation
is paramount and it needs to be evaluated within the
framework of the recent Petition from Israel calling
for all scholars to boycott (yes, boycott) all Israeli
scholars around the world for as long as the current
Prime Minister of Israel Ariel Sharon remains in power
and, the current racist policies towards the
Palestinians remain in effect. To learn more about
that Israeli Petition, please click on the magnifying
glass icon at left.
- 3.
Footnote -
We respectfully take exception to Dr. Wilkie's
contention that he, when responded to
Mr. Duvshani's inquiry, "was not speaking on
behalf of Oxford University or any of its constituent
parts." To see our view on this very narrow issue of
this extremely complex matter, please click on the
magnifying glass icon at left.
 4.
On October 27, 2003, the Oxford University, upon
careful examination and review announced that Sir
Colin Lucas, Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University,
determined that Professor Andrew Wilkie should be
issued with the most serious penalty available, short
of dismissal:
- "The decision follows an
investigation by the board of matters surrounding
an e-mail which Professor Wilkie sent in response
to an enquiry from an Israeli student regarding the
possibility of graduate study in his research
group. This ruling reflects that there can be no
place for any form of discrimination within the
University of Oxford other than on the grounds of
merit."
Dr.
Wilkie has been banished from the institution for
two months without pay and ordered to undergo equal
opportunities training. In a subsequent statement,
Pembroke College announced that Dr. Wilkie had
resigned as a fellow and as a member of its
governing body. To see the full text, please click
on the magnifying glass icon at
left.
- 5.
We are pleased to add herein
Dr.
Ghil`ad Zuckermann's
remarks on Dr. Wilkie's case.
To see it, please click on the corresponding
magnifying glass icon at left.
Dr. Zuckermann is
Gulbenkian Research Fellow at Churchill College,
University of Cambridge, UK.
He is currently in residence at the Rockefeller
Foundation's Villa Serbelloni in Bellagio,
Italy.
.
|
.
|
Q U E R Y :