Oxford Union ‘failed to stand up for free speech’

By S Ratnajeevan H Hoole,
D.Sc. (Eng.) London
Co-ordinator for
Engineering,
University of Jaffna
Former member of the UGC

I trust that all right-thinking people will condemn the security threats that led to the cancellation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa's invited speech at the Oxford Union.
Universities are sacred precincts where all sorts of ideas are discussed and dissected to permit the expansion of knowledge.
As such censorship, especially under threat, is anathema and counterproductive to ideals of free thought.


The threats against the President were organised by an assortment of Tamil and Sinhalese political activists opposed to President Rajapaksa.
I am aware that activists from all over Europe were bussed to converge in London, making one doubt if it was a true exercise in democratic protest involving the British public.
The Oxford Union, after inviting the President had an obligation to allow the event to proceed.
Now through the cancellation, they have failed to stand up for free speech and energized extremist forces, both Sinhalese and Tamil.

The governme [...]