Unam ‘chickens out’ on Zim

THE University of Namibia pulled the plug at the eleventh hour on a public lecture by a well-known Zimbabwean academic critical of that country’s President Robert Mugabe.

Unam announced shortly before lunchtime yesterday that outspoken University of Zimbabwe lecturer Professor John Makumbe’s public lecture, scheduled for last night, was cancelled. “All relevant stakeholders have been informed of the cancellation.We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.The university is unfortunately not at liberty to discuss the reasons behind the cancellation,” Unam spokesperson Utaara Hoveka said in a statement.The public lecture – titled ‘Landscapes of Poverty – Daily Life and Social Crisis in Zimbabwe’ – was jointly organised by Unam’s sociology department and the Namibia Institute for Democracy as part of a series of six lectures for August and September.NID said in a statement that it had acted in good faith in organising the lecture with Unam and, at no stage did the university express any problem with Makumbe or the topic.”In fact, the university has been advertising the lecture series including this particular lecture in several newspapers,” the NID said.The NID said it was concerned about the implications of the cancellation “for academic freedom and freedom of expression at the university and in Namibia in general”.Unam informed the NID of the cancellation yesterday morning and did not give the NID a reason for pulling out of the event at such late notice.”The lecture series received the full backing of Unam as a contribution to the intellectual life of the University.Professor Makumbe’s name and his topic were on the original list of lectures drawn up by the NID and Unam and the process of arranging the lectures proceeded through the appropriate channels at the University,” NID said.Professor Makumbe is a highly respected political scientist who has lectured previously in Namibia, while the NID has a strong track record of organising public debates and discussions which create platforms for a wide variety of views and contribute to strengthening Namibia’s democracy as a whole.In view of the importance of continuing to promote mature democratic debate, the NID decided to proceed with the lecture by moving the venue to a local hotel.A bus was arranged to transport people who arrived at the Unam campus to the Safari Hotel.Another lecture is scheduled for tonight at the same hotel, when Professor Makumbe will talk on the topic ‘Zimbabwe: What Now?’”All relevant stakeholders have been informed of the cancellation.We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.The university is unfortunately not at liberty to discuss the reasons behind the cancellation,” Unam spokesperson Utaara Hoveka said in a statement.The public lecture – titled ‘Landscapes of Poverty – Daily Life and Social Crisis in Zimbabwe’ – was jointly organised by Unam’s sociology department and the Namibia Institute for Democracy as part of a series of six lectures for August and September.NID said in a statement that it had acted in good faith in organising the lecture with Unam and, at no stage did the university express any problem with Makumbe or the topic.”In fact, the university has been advertising the lecture series including this particular lecture in several newspapers,” the NID said. The NID said it was concerned about the implications of the cancellation “for academic freedom and freedom of expression at the university and in Namibia in general”.Unam informed the NID of the cancellation yesterday morning and did not give the NID a reason for pulling out of the event at such late notice.”The lecture series received the full backing of Unam as a contribution to the intellectual life of the University.Professor Makumbe’s name and his topic were on the original list of lectures drawn up by the NID and Unam and the process of arranging the lectures proceeded through the appropriate channels at the University,” NID said.Professor Makumbe is a highly respected political scientist who has lectured previously in Namibia, while the NID has a strong track record of organising public debates and discussions which create platforms for a wide variety of views and contribute to strengthening Namibia’s democracy as a whole.In view of the importance of continuing to promote mature democratic debate, the NID decided to proceed with the lecture by moving the venue to a local hotel.A bus was arranged to transport people who arrived at the Unam campus to the Safari Hotel.Another lecture is scheduled for tonight at the same hotel, when Professor Makumbe will talk on the topic ‘Zimbabwe: What Now?’