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The University of Liverpool is abandoning plans to open a campus in Egypt after coming under criticism from academics who accused it of ignoring the country’s human rights record, The Guardian reported.
Leaked documents from Liverpool warned of “potential risk/exposure to reputational damage that might be presented through a venture of this kind.” The documents described Egypt's “political and operating environment” as “challenging.”
More than 200 academics signed an open letter published in The Guardian in August opposing a push by the British government and the presidential association Universities UK to promote partnerships between British and Egyptian universities.
"We question the wisdom and legitimacy of this move to do business as usual with an authoritarian regime that systematically attacks research, education and academic freedom," the letter stated. "We do not believe that the universities represented on UUK’s recent delegation to Egypt can guarantee the safety or freedom of expression of their academic staff or students."
