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Harvard reinstates offer to ex-Human Rights Watch chief after Israel controversy
Harvard University reinstated a fellowship offer to a prominent human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. Kenneth Roth, the former director of Human Rights Watch, was offered and accepted a one-year fellowship at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Carr Center for Human Rights Policy last year. Roth said the school’s dean, Douglas Elmendorf, vetoed the offer in July shortly after it was made. He added that he wasn’t informed of the reason the offer was rescinded, but said he thought it was due to his criticism of Israel and donor influence. The Nation reported on the incident earlier this month, tying the retracted offer to Israel and setting off a firestorm of controversy over academic freedom and criticism of the Jewish state. It wasn’t clear why the claims were not raised when Roth was denied the fellowship last summer. On Thursday, Elmendorf issued a statement saying he had "made an error" and the school would again offer Roth a fellowship. Elmendorf flatly denied that his decision was influenced by donors or politics. "Donors do not affect our consideration of academic matters," Elmendorf said. "My decision also was not made to limit debate at the Kennedy School about human rights in any country." "My decision on Mr. Roth last summer was based on my evaluation of his potential contributions to the School," Elmendorf added. Roth said he was "thrilled" that Elmendorf had again extended the fellowship offer, but said the dean was not being forthcoming about his motives and that the episode had chilled academic freedom. "He still has not said anything about the people ’who matter to him’ whom he said were behind his original veto decision. Full transparency is key," Roth said. "Second, I remain worried about academic freedom," Roth continued. "The problem of people penalized for criticizing Israel is not limited to me." Roth, the son of a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany, ran HRW for three decades before retiring last year. He has since accepted a fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. He championed a range of human rights issues with the New York-based group, including a push to ban anti-personnel land mines, and the establishment of the International Criminal Court for prosecuting war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Roth and HRW are widely praised among human rights In 2021, HRW issued a sweeping 213-page report accusing Israel of apartheid. Israel rejected the report, calling its "fictional claims... both preposterous and false," and accusing HRW of having "a long-standing anti-Israel agenda." US Jewish groups also denounced the report, with the American Jewish Congress calling it a "hatchet job," and pro-Israel researchers saying it was riddled with inaccuracies. Israel expelled HRW’s Israel director in 2019 due to his alleged support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. The founder of Human Rights Watch, Robert Bernstein, joined the group’s critics in 2009, saying it was biased against Israel and acting in bad faith. Related: Harvard University: 2023-01-08 Ex-Human Rights Watch chief denied Harvard fellowship over anti-Israel bias Harvard University: 2022-11-19 Bio of Polish statesman holds lessons on today's Ukraine Harvard University: 2022-11-05 Ivy League schools use 'personality score' to reject applicants Related: Kenneth Roth: 2023-01-08 Ex-Human Rights Watch chief denied Harvard fellowship over anti-Israel bias Kenneth Roth: 2022-01-14 Germany: Syrian torture on trial Kenneth Roth: 2020-12-28 China Jails Citizen-Journalist For Four Years Over Wuhan Virus Reporting Posted by: trailing wife 2023-01-20 |
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