Swiss University Won’t Revoke Honor for Mussolini

The University of Lausanne, in Switzerland, has decided not to revoke an honorary degree for Benito Mussolini, the World War II leader of Italy and an ally of Adolf Hitler, Reuters reported.

A panel of experts commissioned to examine the case said that the decision to grant the doctorate “constituted a serious mistake on the part of the academic and political authorities” at the time. “This title constitutes a legitimization of a criminal regime and its ideology.”

However, the panel did not recommend withdrawing the title, saying it would give the false impression that the original decision to give the doctorate could be “corrected today.”