UP's Jimenez: Accord with AFP won't curtail academic freedom

University of the Philippines (UP) President Angelo Jimenez has defended the Declaration of Cooperation between UP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), saying that it does not violate academic freedom and is consistent with the mandate of UP as a premier higher educational institution.

According to Jimenez, the UP-AFP declaration which was signed on August 8, only serves as the initial framework to guide future areas of cooperation and “won’t curtail academic freedom because UP researchers can choose and define their specific terms of engagement.”

He also assured that any activity undertaken under the accord “shall be mutually agreed upon by both participants” and that the UP Center for Integrative Development Studies (CIDS) will be the one to lead the endeavor.

“UP CIDS is free to pursue research interests with AFP in areas that are relevant to UP’s role, mission and mandate,” Jimenez said in a statement.

“This in itself is an exercise in academic freedom. The only thing required is conformity to the highest standards of academic rigor in the pursuit of truth,” he added.

Jimenez issued the remark after the UP community, composed of students, faculty, and other personnel, denounced his move to sign the agreement, which they believe “gravely compromised UP’s academic freedom.”

According to a joint statement by UP’s Office of the Student Regent, Office of the Faculty Regent, Office of the Staff Regent, Kasama sa UP, and Defend UP Network, the Jimenez administration made the move without any consultation with them.

“UP purportedly champions fearless scholarship and critical thinking, but its administration now wants to ‘strategically align (its) resources and expertise’ with a coercive institution that we all know has been accused countless times by local and international human rights watchdog groups of trampling on civil liberties in its purported counterinsurgency campaigns and attacks on government critics and dissidents,” the community said.

“The signing of this declaration essentially requires the University to be complicit to human rights violations and political oppression. It also essentially legitimizes ongoing suppression of critical voices and progressive initiatives within the University that the military deems inimical to its notion of ‘national security.’”

In response, Jimenez said that UP academic officials and UP CIDS researchers are willing to clarify questions and doubts through an open dialogue with critics of the declaration.

The AFP earlier said that the agreement “outlined key areas including strategic studies and educational outreach, reflecting the AFP’s dedication to national security and UP’s commitment to academic and social progress.”

It also aims to “facilitate various initiatives, including joint research projects, academic programs, and community engagement activities, with the aim of strategically aligning resources and expertise between the AFP and UP.” — RSJ, GMA Integrated News