Kem Sokha’s CPP-Loyal Brother Given Police Promotion

By Chhorn Chansy - May 29, 2013

Kem Sokhon, the estranged brother of Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) acting president Kem Sokha, has been appointed to a senior role within the Interior Ministry’s national police department, a week after he gave a televised speech lambasting his sibling.

According to a May 22 sub-decree signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen and King Norodom Sihamoni that was obtained Tuesday, Mr. Sokhon was appointed deputy director of the national police’s department of central security—a role created specifically for him—and given the senior title of major general. 

The sub-decree was signed just days after the newly minted Maj. Gen. Sokhon appeared on Bayon Television, which is owned by Mr. Hun Sen’s daughter Hun Mana, and warned viewers that the opposition SRP and Human Rights Party—both of which he was previously a member of, and which merged to form the CNRP—were useless, including his brother, and that only the ruling CPP works for the people.

Prior to his promotion, Maj. Gen. Sokhon was an adviser to the government and a brigadier general in the Interior Ministry’s secretariat.

“He has been a brigadier general for many years,” national police spokesman Lieutenant General Kirth Chantharith said by telephone Tuesday.

“It is the right time [to promote him], because he has worked for many years,” Lt. Gen. Chantharith added, without specifying how many years Mr. Sokhon had been a brigadier general.

Maj. Gen. Sokhon declined to comment on his promotion, or relations with his politically active brother.

In his televised speech, which Mr. Hun Sen on Friday said should be replayed in villages around the country in the lead up to the July 28 national election, Mr. Sokhon said: “You have to decide between the CPP and the opposition party. Who is working to help you, and who is just lying and cheating on you?”

Reached by telephone, Mr. Sokha chose not to comment on his brother’s promotion. “I would not comment, but citizens can make their own evaluation and know the tricks of the CPP,” he said.

CNRP spokesman Yim Sovann said the ruling party is merely using Maj. Gen. Sokhon in order to attack the opposition.

“In the CPP, anyone who is good at insulting the opposition party gets a position and a promotion,” he said. “It does not affect the party. Cambodian citizens know about the national and world history.”

Opposition slow to bite back in crisis

Last Updated on 29 May 2013

By David Boyle and Joe Freeman

Last Updated on 29 May 2013

By David Boyle and Joe Freeman

 

Analysis

Blindsided by a damaging political scandal, the Cambodia National Rescue Party finally moved into crisis management mode on Monday, defending acting president Kem Sokha from allegations he had denied the existence of the notorious Khmer Rouge S-21 prison.

The response, however, came two days after the scandal broke, leaving observers to wonder why the opposition CNRP had dragged its feet for so long, and whether the delay says something about the party’s preparedness mere months before the national election.

“They have the spokesperson, but they don’t have a team, and they don’t have a good strategy,” said Pa Nguon Teang, director of the Cambodian Center for Independent Media. “They just wait for the media to approach them rather than approaching the media.”

On Monday, after refusing to speak to reporters about the controversy, Sokha offered some explanation of how his comments could have been cut out of context in the roughly one-minute edited clip to suggest S-21 was a Vietnamese invention.

At last, the CNRP issued a statement that afternoon, saying the comments were misleadingly edited from a more than year-old speech rather than a recent outing to Prey Veng province recent outing to Prey Veng province on May 18, as the Council Ministers’ website claims.

The CNRP further argued yesterday that Sokha was not even in Prey Veng on the day in question and said they have a recording of what they claim is the actual speech, devoid of any reference to S-21, which he delivered in Kampong Cham province that day.

“On May 18, he was in Kampong Cham, and we have the full speech in Kampong Cham and that has already been broadcast a few days afterward, and we have that full recorded,” Kem Sokha’s daughter and CNRP deputy director of public affairs Kem Monovithya said yesterday.

“Why over a year ago wasn’t there any reaction from the public? And, of course, people listen to his speeches all the time,” she said. “What we are saying is that if it was offensive, people would have reacted over a year ago.”

But such defences came far too late; the scandal had already assumed a life of its own.

The CNRP statement came hours after Prime Minister Hun Sen picked up on the controversy in a speech and ran with it, using the CPP-distributed recording of Sokha, in which he appears to call S-21 a Vietnamese myth, to propose a law outlawing genocide denial.

Suddenly, Sokha found himself portrayed as a conspiracy theorist whose comments questioned the crimes of a regime that killed his own father.

Historians have written that the Vietnamese helped with the preservation of S-21, more commonly known as Tuol Sleng but had nothing to do with it when it was an active prison where about 13,000 Cambodians were imprisoned there before being killed by the Khmer Rouge.

Today, Sokha will for the first time formally address the press. But the CNRP still have not provided a clear and coherent explanation of exactly how Sokha’s comments in the short, ruling party-produced audio clip could have been twisted out of context, and their glacial response to the damning allegations has been hard for some to fathom.

Yim Sovann, a spokesman from one of the two parties that merged to create the CNRP last year, said it took time to release an accurate response, and that a team of three sifted through hour after hour of speeches to find the relevant tape.

“We had to check one by one. Oh, it took a long time. He went to many provinces, and many communes, we had to check one by one,” he said.

“We found out everything the CPP said was fabricated,” he added, accusing the ruling party of splicing the recording together to create a misrepresentation of Sokha’s views.

Sovann said a recording of the actual speech Sokha delivered on May 18 would be presented to the media.

Ek Tha, a spokesman for the Council of Minister’s Press and Quick Reaction Unit, yesterday emphatically denied that the recording of Sokha had been misleadingly edited, but would not say whether the PQRU would release the full audio clip so this could be verified.

“Whatever he said is from very strong evidence, and the Press and Quick Reaction Unit is very accurate. We do not make things up. We stick to the facts; we stick to comments made by Kem Sokha, and Kem Sokha’s comments were very unacceptable,” he said.

Though the PQRU has had his party on the ropes for the past few days, Sovann scoffed at the idea the CNRP needed a more sophisticated PR machine.

He pointed out that with no access to state radio and television, the opposition was limited to print media and a radio station with insufficient broadcasting reach as its only platforms.

“How can we communicate the message to the people? You know how many people read the newspaper? Only one or two people read the newspaper,” he said. “It is not a matter for human resources. It is a matter of CPP control of the media.”

But crisis communications is a new reality for all parties in Cambodia. The CPP’s PQRU is itself only a few years old and only recently created a position for a dedicated National Assembly spokesman.

Laura Thornton, senior director for the Cambodia wing of the National Democratic Institute, said her organisation provided training in media messaging for provincial officials with various party affiliations last year.

“There just doesn’t seem to be a lot of familiarity with the process,” she said. “They were less capable of identifying what their opponent might say about them.”

In the training, officials were asked to foresee what another party might say about them during an exercise called “message box”.

“Before a crisis happens, what could happen? What are your weaknesses? how can you address your vulnerabilities?” Thornton said. “I think all the parties are going to have to be savvier and more on top of this.”

And perhaps yesterday Sokha had heeded that message when he publicly announced he would support Hun Sen’s proposed law to outlaw genocide denial legislation, no doubt a primer for revelations at tomorrow’s press conference. As for the very top of the CNRP, the response was succinct. Answering a series of questions about the scandal, self-exiled president Sam Rainsy, who lives abroad to avoid prison terms in Cambodia, merely wrote:  “I am disturbed by this incident, which makes me feel sorry,” in an emailed response to the Post on Monday.  

Kingdom lacks engineers: minister

Students at Hun Sen University attend a graduation ceremony last February. Photograph: Heng Chivoan/Phnom Penh Post

 

Last Updated on 29 May 2013

By Rann Reuy

Because Cambodia’s youth has not focused enough on studying technical or engineering subjects, the Kingdom now faces a lack of human resources and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports plans to reform the country’s education system, according to the minister in charge.

Minister Im Sethy said he foresaw businesses or office-work related subjects attracting more students at university level than engineering subjects.

“Now we see most [youths] have studied business, office work and communication, but they don’t pay attention and rarely choose subjects like engineering, and technical works,” he said.

Im Sethy said people who have had proper education, particularly university students, mostly focused on studying in fields where they don’t have to work in difficult areas, but prefer studying communication subjects, such as writing and speaking.

Education officials are learning from this situation and are looking to reform the education system in order to direct the youths to target their options for their jobs, he said.

He acknowledged that technical learning is important for improving the quality of work.

“We need to establish some places that are necessary in some provinces to train techniques [to the young],” he said. “We think further how to encourage youths – both boys and girls – who are studying in high school to have signals that direct them to study science and mathematics.”

According to the ministry’s Education Statistics and Indicators 2011-2012, Cambodia had 554,828 enrolled students studying from grade 7 to grade 12, while the students who finished high school totalled 90,000 last year.

Tech Samnang, adviser to the government and former secretary-general of the Accreditation Committee of Cambodia (ACC), agreed with Im Sethy, saying that most of the students have no confidence in their own decisions and chose subjects not based on their desires.

“They see immediate money and they flock to study that subject,” he said, adding that “when they apply for work, one company needs 10 employees, but applicants could be a thousand. How can they [be employed]?”

Cambodia needed a lot of engineering graduates, particularly in the agricultural sector, while most Cambodian youths thought that studying agriculture means going back to work on a farm, but they don’t know that they can use new techniques to produce more from the farms.

Heng Vanda, principal of the Vanda Institute, said recently there were about 8,000 students majoring in accounting.

He said the business major could be divided into many subjects, such as management, marketing, accounting and tourism which would enable the students to have jobs during their studying time, or let some of the students to set up their own businesses, such as running restaurants.

“Cambodia lacks human resources in higher skills such as financial analysis,” he said.

CHINA: Joblessness fears as record number of graduates hit market

Yojana Sharma22 May 2013 Issue No:273

 

A record 6.99 million students – an increase of 190,000 on last year's figure – will graduate from China’s higher education institutions this year. But graduate unemployment, a scourge in recent years, shows no sign of easing for the class of 2013.

Local media in a number of Chinese regions have been declaring 2013 as the toughest year ‘in recent memory’ for new graduates looking for their first job, with even the country’s top leaders voicing concerns.

Already official media is reporting that job vacancies for graduates in Beijing are at 98,000, a year-on-year decrease of 14%, with officials linking the drop to a slowdown in economic growth.

This month Chinese President Xi Jinping said in official statements that employment would be a top priority, at a time when economic growth has eased from double-digit figures to around 7.7% in the first quarter of this year, the slowest annual rate for over a decade. The manufacturing sector also declined slightly this year.

According to official estimates, every 1% drop in GDP growth figures wipes out around a million jobs.

Xi had paid a surprise visit to a job fair in Tianjin in eastern China on 14 May and urged relevant authorities to assist graduates who wanted to start their own businesses and those who were seeking employment.

Premier Li Keqiang said in the same week that the country faced an “unprecedented challenge” in finding jobs for the record number of graduates.

“In the first few months of the year, as economic growth has slowed, the employment trend has remained stable but employment pressures remain, and the problem of employment for tertiary students is particularly prominent,” Li said in a speech.

The figures

According to official media the number of graduates is "outrunning" economic growth.

“In the past nearly 90% of graduates could find a job six months after graduation but I’m afraid the figure may only be 86% or so if the economy does not rebound in the later half of the year,” Zhang Yi, an expert in labour economics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, was quoted as saying this month in the official China Daily.

The leadership has said that graduate employment will be the focus of government efforts in coming years, with the development of service industries, including promoting more internship programmes.

However, conditions are tough for final-year students, who graduate in July.

According to the http://MyCos.Com website, the 2013 job contract signing rate for postgraduates is at just 26%, down 9% compared to last year. For undergraduates and junior college students the equivalent figure is 35% and 32%, down 12% and 13% respectively compared to last year. The number of employment contracts signed is a key comparable indicator of job prospects.

The official Global Times this week reported a booming business in selling fake employment contracts to graduating students, as some universities have been demanding proof of employment before they will provide a copy of their qualification.

Universities rely on high graduate employment rates for government funding and other resources. The practice may be further inflating employment figures, distorting the dire unemployment situation, academics said.

In Shanghai the Municipal Education Commission said only 44% of around 178,000 undergraduate and graduate students in the city had signed employment contracts so far this year – a 2% decline compared to last year.

The commission’s Deputy Director Li Ruiyan said in a press briefing this month that the situation was “no worse” than 2009-11.

Nonetheless, he said the number of available positions in Shanghai had declined compared to the past two years, particularly in social services, manufacturing industries and private companies, according to the Shanghai Daily newspaper.

Universities offering incentives

Universities and colleges have been concerned for some time about the employment prospects of their students. Shanghai’s universities were reportedly offering incentives for students to return to their home towns to work. These include career training programmes, communications skills and other courses.

For example Shanghai Dianji University was offering transportation subsidies of up to CNY1,500 (US$242) and an additional CNY800 to students from outside Shanghai willing to return to their home towns to work after graduating. Incentives would also be offered to students carrying on to postgraduate studies, the university said.

Yao Wichun, deputy director of student affairs at Shanghai Dianji University, said there had been a 6% drop in the number of graduates with bachelor degrees who had secured a job, compared to this time last year.

Shanghai University was reported in Shanghai Daily as launching a training camp for students who had difficulty finding a job, to improve their skills.

There has also been a boom in private training centres that purport to make graduates ‘job ready’, teaching them interview technique and other soft skills sought by employers.

Shanghai students were said to have higher salary expectations compared to those in other cities, due to Shanghai’s higher living costs, and some ‘netizens’ speculated on the Sina Weibo social media site that graduates were demanding too much in salary.

Officials continued to insist that graduates’ expectations were too high. 

MALAYSIA: Court quashes new private college registration rules

New Straits Times25 May 2013 Issue No:273

 

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Association of Private Colleges and Universities and 54 others yesterday obtained the green light from the High Court to quash a circular in relation to the new registration system of international students in local private institutions.

Judge Datuk Seri Zakaria Sam granted leave for a judicial review to the applicants after the leave application was not objected to by the Attorney-General's Chambers.

Besides the Malaysian Association of Private Colleges and Universities, the National Association of Private Educational Institutions, Aimst University and 52 other private institutions are the applicants in the leave application filed on April 30.

They named the Registrar General of Private Higher Educational Institutions and Higher Education Ministry as respondents.

In their affidavit in support, the applicants claimed that the registrar general had issued the circular on Jan 23 to all private institutions to introduce additional conditions for the students' registration.

The additional conditions include that all private institutions were required to use a new system called the Students Application and Registration System (Stars) to submit application for international student passes on behalf of the student.

They also claimed that the institutions would be required to pay a mandatory processing fee of RM1,000 to a government linked company, Educational Malaysia Global Services (EMGS), upon the submission of an application on the Stars system.

"The other fees which the private institutions would be required to pay are the medical screening fee of RM250 and the fee for the medical insurance policy selected by the student.

"The fees would be payable to EMGS directly."

They further claimed that they have incurred high additional costs as a result of the new conditions.

"The changes introduced by the circular has made the entire process more bureaucratic," they said.

The applicants are seeking, among others, a court declaration that the circular is ultra vires the Private Higher Educational Institutions Act 1996 and the Federal Constitution.

Zakaria yesterday ordered the applicants to file their judicial review application within 14 days.

Read more: Green light from the High Court for private colleges and universities - Latest - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/latest/green-light-from-the-high-court-for-private-colleges-and-universities-1.283914#ixzz2UPaZs42o

NETHERLANDS: Foreign PhDs urged to stay during strong expansion

Jan Petter Myklebust and Eric Beerkens25 May 2013 Issue No:273

 

The number of doctoral candidates in the 13 Dutch universities jumped by almost 60% in the decade to 2010 and is now close to 4,000 students each year. An OECD country report on tertiary education in The Netherlands in 2008 said the proportion of foreign students at doctorate level was then 20%, with some 640 PhDs conferred.

Through the ongoing internationalisation of graduate education in The Netherlands, a broad variety of different PhD trajectories have emerged.

The PhD candidate as an employee of the university is the traditional model and is still widespread, especially in the hard sciences and life sciences.

Increasingly, however, foreign PhD candidates come to The Netherlands to pursue the degree while being funded by their own governments. Chinese government-sponsored students and DIKTI students – lecturers funded by the Indonesian Directorate General of Higher Education – are important examples.

The PhD premium

The output-based financing in the Dutch system – through a so-called ‘PhD premium’ where universities receive around €90,000 (US$116,000) for each graduate – is an important factor contributing to the growth.

Data collected by the Dutch Association of Universities indicates that 50% of PhD candidates at the three technical universities are foreign, with 60% from Europe, 25% from Asia and Oceania, and 10% from North America. The percentage of international employed PhD candidates for all universities was 45% in 2010, up from 35% in 2006.

The first five years after 2000 saw the third highest growth rate of international students in the world in The Netherlands, after South Africa and New Zealand.

According to a Nuffic report, in 2011-12, 69,450 international students were in the country, up 45% since 2007-08. But this large number included exchange students, while those enrolled in degree courses amounted to 56,131 in 2011-12.

Spain and France had more than 2,000 students at Dutch higher education institutions, while Italy, Bulgaria, the US, the UK, Poland, Indonesia, Greece, Turkey and Romania each had more than 1,000.

Not enough Dutch PhD students

But The Netherlands authorities are worried that doctoral training – especially in the fields of natural sciences, life sciences and engineering – is not attracting enough Dutch students, with many talented youths deterred from studying for a doctorate because only 30% of PhD holders are estimated to find work in academic institutions.

Furthermore, in many organisations outside the world of academia, a doctoral degree is not rewarded or is rewarded only to a limited extent.

The fact that PhD graduates are increasingly employed outside academe has been acknowledged by many Dutch universities and is reflected by the increased attention to transferable skills in many graduate schools.

The PhD Candidates Network of The Netherlands even set up a ‘professional PhD programme’ that provides students with the opportunity to work for several months outside their universities.

The Dutch authorities have tried repeatedly to address the imbalance between more doctorate holders leaving The Netherlands than those who graduated from local universities or migrated to The Netherlands with a degree taken elsewhere.

The Journal of Doctoral Studies published a report based on a survey that mapped the employment status of doctorate students at the time of graduation and looked at what factors influenced their initial labour market position.

The survey of 1,113 PhD candidates at four Dutch universities revealed that 86% of the respondents were in employment at the time of graduation, while 12% were working with a foreign university or university-affiliated organisation abroad.

Asked if they would seek work abroad, 11% reported they would go to another country, 14% were undecided and 75% said they hoped to find work in The Netherlands. Of internationally recruited PhD candidates who had come to The Netherlands to pursue their doctoral degree, 37% indicated they wanted to remain, 20% were undecided and 43% planned to leave.

The Social and Economic Council of The Netherlands, a powerful advisor to the government, published a report in January addressed to the Minister of Education and titled Making it in The Netherlands: Advisory report on retaining international students in The Netherlands.

The report calculates that if 19% of foreign students taking a degree in The Netherlands were to stay, this would generate €740 million a year in net return on investment.

It notes that, at present, only 7% of foreign students are studying science or technology – whereas in other countries the proportion is up to 52% – and calls for new strategies to recruit foreign students and retain them in programmes that will help alleviate labour market shortages.

Tax incentives

In an effort to boost the number of skilled workers and doctorate holders, the government introduced a 30% tax reduction scheme last year that also applies to postdocs. The extra incentives were intended to attract foreign specialists with specific skills or expertise that were scarce or not available in the local marketplace.

The most significant benefit is that the full Dutch taxable salary is reduced to a 70% salary, so that 30% of the agreed wage is exempt from payroll and personal income tax.

The Tax and Customs Administration offers a maximum effective tax rate of 36.4% so foreigners can cover their extra-territorial expenses, and these may include the costs of water, gas and electricity etc if prices in The Netherlands are higher than in the country of origin.

PhD and masters graduates who are hired within a year of completing their studies also benefit from a relaxation of the rules.

Conclusion

The high quality of Dutch researchers is demonstrated by the number of European Research Council grants awarded to young scientists at Dutch host institutions, second in the EU-27 grant round after France. A relatively small proportion of Dutch grant holders selected a host institution in another country, indicating untapped potential for recruitment of international talent.

Dutch PhD candidates were traditionally employed by the university where they earned their doctorate, but now universities want more flexibility by having the opportunity to offer scholarships instead of salaries.

But there is a lot of opposition from the PhD candidates, who fear a worsening of their working conditions. Universities, however, believe a more flexible system would increase the opportunities to recruit new PhD students, especially from abroad.

Professor Jo Ritzen, a former education minister in three Dutch governments and president of Maastricht University from 2003-11, says: “The Netherlands’ prosperity, its economy and Dutch higher education will all benefit enormously if talented foreign students can be persuaded to study in the country and remain after graduation.

“I am tremendously pleased with the dramatic increase in foreign PhDs. This is a great contribution to our future welfare because they bring talent and make academia blossom in international openness.

“Many play a substantial role after completion of their PhD either within The Netherlands or in other countries as partners in academic or economic activities which spur the development in The Netherlands”.

* Eric Beerkens works at Leiden University on internationalisation policies and strategies.

SINGAPORE: Lack of students closes joint law course with NYU

Adele Yung25 May 2013 Issue No:273

 

A joint degree run by New York University and the National University of Singapore that awarded a master of laws degree from both universities is being scrapped after just five years, due to poor uptake by students.

The one-year graduate course started in 2007 with 39 students, with ambitions to enrol up to 80 students a year. However, according to National University of Singapore (NUS) figures it averaged only around 40 students a year.

Although the degree attracted students from more than 20 countries, just 21 students will enter the programme this year, completing the degree in 2014.

Tuition fees for the course taught by faculty members from both universities are around S$62,600 (US$50,000) a year – almost double the cost of NUS’s graduate law programmes.

According to local reports, “at least” 50 scholarships were offered in each of the first four years of the programme but that did not appear to boost the intake.

Singapore’s Economic Development Board, which provides incentives for private businesses to set up in Singapore, had provided some financial support “based on the understanding that it would be financially sustainable after a few years”.

Students study in the Singapore institution for a law degree before going to the US. New York University (NYU) said in a statement: “The incoming class that begins its studies in May 2013 will be the last intake for the programme.

“This group is the last that is covered by the order of the New York State Court of Appeals that allows NYU@NUS graduates to sit the New York Bar examination. It also enjoys generous scholarships and financial awards that the programme has secured for outstanding applicants from around the world.”

The degree was initially established for four years until 2011 and then extended for another three until 2014.

“We have now agreed to conclude the programme without seeking additional financing to extend it. In the last few years, the cost of graduate legal education has risen significantly, and running the programme in Singapore has been made possible by a generous grant by the government of Singapore to fund the numerous scholarships offered,” NYU said.

“Unfortunately, the programme did not become self-financing in the way we had hoped it would; continuing it in its present form would entail a significant diversion of financial resources on the part of both NYU and NUS.”

NUS said that about five or six of its students go on to study in the US every year.

The Economic Development Board said it had provided financial support to the NYU@NUS programme on the understanding that it would be financially sustainable after a few years.

However, other law education providers have not been dissuaded from the Singapore market.

The UK’s College of Law announced last year that it would set up a Singapore campus – its first venture outside the UK – in conjunction with the Singapore Institute of Legal Education, to develop new courses in the city state.

It will be an accredited provider of continuing professional development programmes in law, which became compulsory in Singapore from April 2012, as well as developing undergraduate and graduate courses.

Singapore is seen as a hub of international legal and arbitration services for the region, but in practice most law graduates in the commercial field work for British commercial law firms. 

Students ambush Subedi

Last Updated on 22 May 2013

By Kevin Ponniah

 

Students hold aloft signs protesting at the visit of UN human rights envoy Surya Subedi last night following a lecture he had given. Photograph: Vireak Mai/Phnom Penh Post

United Nations human rights envoy Surya Subedi was ambushed last night by what appeared to be a co-ordinated student group while delivering a public lecture, raising suspicions that it was a political stunt.

Professor Subedi, who was delivering a lecture on international investment law at Cambodian Mekong University, had completed his lecture and was taking questions when the ruckus began.

Six students took to the microphone, all questioning the right of Subedi to report on Cambodia, with many students also questioning his impartiality and agenda – all to raucous applause from the packed house of university students.

“What the hell are you doing to Cambodia?” one particularly energised young man asked. “Will you lose your job if you say Cambodia’s human rights situation is good?”

“Your result [in your report] is the same as the opposition party. I don’t have any questions for you because I am very disappointed in you,” said another student.

Subedi responded to the students’ questions after they had all spoken, saying he was impressed by their “courage”.

“My reports on human rights are based on my analysis of the situation here. I listen to people from all walks of life. As a friend of Cambodia, I am offering my advice on how to improve the situation of governance in this country,” he said, adding that the UN does not “impose its will on anybody”.

“You will thank me in 20 years’ time. You are young now and you have a young sentiment. I salute it; I appreciate it,” he told the crowd. Following Professor Subedi’s response, University Chancellor Ich Seng was delivering the closing remarks when a group of students gathered at the hall’s entrance and unfurled banners calling for the elimination of the UN Special Rapporteur position.

A number of students seated around the hall then pulled out similar hand-drawn signs from underneath their tables and began chanting “No more Surya Subedi” in English.

The students then assembled outside the entrance, continuing their chanting and refusing to budge despite the requests of university staff.

The protesters refused to comment, although one told the Post they were members of a political student group.

A local NGO worker, who wished to remain nameless, said she recognised some protestors as members of the CPP Youth.

Some of the students assembled also questioned the protesters’ political motivation. “I think they are from the government youth . . . if they want to protest against Mr Subedi like this . . . and they want him to go out of the country, then I think they are supporters of the government,” 24-year-old Sokha told the Post.

However, a female student who was one of the six to launch a tirade during question time, insisted that she was not a member of a political party and came to the lecture of her own volition.

“I can say what my heart feels. I can say something that I know,” 21-year-old Hun Youn said.

Others who attended the lecture simply expressed their surprise at what had happened. “I did not expect this, and I think it’s not good because I support the special rapporteur. He is very good for Cambodia,” Narith, 30, said.

While Un Nay, 23, a member of staff at the university, said that although he did not expect the protest he supported the students’ right to do so. “If the action is effective for [Subedi] to hear it or for other people to hear it, it is good,” he said.

Gaye Valerie Salacup, head of the university’s international office, said the event was “not the venue” for students to voice their anger towards Subedi.

Subedi himself remained calm in the face of the protests, giving the Post a philosophical response as he exited the building:  “It was not surprising for me. They are learning and it is a process of learning. It will continue.”

Additional reporting by Sarah Thust

Hun Many looks towards the future

Last Updated on 23 May 2013

By Chhay Channyda

 

Hun Many, son of Prime Minister Hun Sen, speaks with the Post in Phnom Penh on Monday. Photo by Kara Fox

 

Prime Minister Hun Sen’s youngest son, Hun Many, is the first of his father’s progeny to officially run for public office. A father of three, Hun Many has studied in the United States, France and Australia. This year he threw his hat into the ring as a candidate to represent Kampong Speu province in July’s national election, surprising many observers who thought his elder brother Manet would be first to embrace parliamentary life. The deputy cabinet chief and head of the Cambodian People’s Party Youth Association spoke to the Post’s Chhay Channyda about stepping up into politics, foreign affairs and Cambodia’s future.

At the ASEAN summit last year in Cambodia, did you have the chance to meet US President Barack Obama? What did your father tell his children about the meeting between himself and Obama?
It was an incredibly proud moment, because in history, no serving US president had come to Cambodia. But [South Korean] President Lee Myung-bak, [Chinese] Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, former [Japanese] Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and [Australian] Prime Minister Julia Gillard also joined the ASEAN summit.

In the bilateral meeting between the Cambodian prime minister and the US president, there was a lot of talk. I also know [what was said]. I recorded the meeting in the meeting room, so I learned a lot from this discussion.

During the meeting, it was reported that there was some tension on certain issues.
I can say, as I was present during the meeting, that those types of tensions are common among leaders, but it was not an absolute 100 per cent disagreement. Be they in England or France, people get information from different sources. So that was an opportunity for Samdech [Hun Sen] to clarify [the situation in Cambodia] regarding what the media had said [about Cambodia], and he told President Obama that he got his information about Cambodia from his network or diplomats.

However, the situation that I saw on that day was not a serious disagreement. In the end, there were handshakes, discussions, and they had dinner that night.

China often gives loans or assistance to Cambodia for the construction of roads, bridges and other development. In the ASEAN meeting, there was some conflict on the issue of the South China Sea and charges that Cambodia adopted a pro-China stance. How do you feel about the government’s stance on the South China Sea?
I think the issue of the South China Sea did not [suddenly] materialise in November. We discussed and debated. [Malaysian] Prime Minister Najib [Razak] said that the issue of the South China Sea is in the mandate of ASEAN and China, and it has to do with ASEAN and China asking for other friends [to help] in following the guidelines of the DOC [Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea].

[Indonesian] President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono also raised that point. In fact, I can raise these points [now], because now the case is out of our hands. We [Cambodia], as the chair of ASEAN, needed to coordinate and could not express our view. Samdech Prime Minister also co-ordinated in his role as chairman of ASEAN, but President Obama said he agreed that a moderate position is how to help push the COC [Code of Conduct in the South China Sea].

We talked about [the South China Sea issue] in Phnom Penh and also in Brunei, but in Brunei, they [the media] said nothing, but we heard the news in November 2012 [while Cambodia had the ASEAN chair] that there was discord over the South China Sea.

But there is the same position [in Brunei], urging the COC. I think I will wait and see if at ASEAN Plus at the end of this year, whether it will be an issue.

Concerning the leadership of your father, what key influences have you taken from him politically?
I remember in the 1990s, my father did not want his children to engage in politics, because in the circumstances where he was still seeking peace for the country, it was very difficult. On one hand, he was responsible for the fate of the country, and on the other side, he had to think of his wife, children and entire family. But [when] I think of my father or other leaders of the CPP, the first priority, the main point of the Cambodian People’s Party, is that in all circumstances, they live with the people.

I think we all should recognise not only party policies [but that] if there was no sacrifice 34 years ago, we would not have arrived here today. The IMF [International Monetary Fund] and other countries also recognised [these achievements] as well.

This is a key factor in the sacrifice to the cause of the homeland. This is a point that I learned from my father and other CPP leaders.

In a previous interview with the Post, you quoted former US President John F Kennedy, who said, “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.” What did you mean by that and how important do you consider the relationship between Cambodia and the United States?
I think that his speech was about sacrifice for the homeland. In fact, it reflects the real context of what’s happening in Cambodia, because if there had been no Kampuchean United Front for National Salvation [that liberated Cambodia from the Khmer Rouge], there would have been no sacrifice of fresh blood for the country. In that time, foreigners didn’t help us. I think regarding the other question, that the relationship with the US is crucial. If we study history, we suffered a lot of long centuries from war. So the CPP’s leaders said that Cambodia needs only friends, whether they are from the US, France, Australia or from within the framework of ASEAN, we want only friends, because this can develop our country.

I remember President Obama’s speech when he was receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008, he thanked the committee that gave him the award but said the American people voted for him, so his important task was to serve his people. That is, he wanted to show that even if the world wants the president to take a peaceful position, he serves his people first.

In the future, if you are selected as a lawmaker in Kampong Speu province, what are the most important issues you will aim to solve for your constituents?
Regarding rice this year, Kampong Speu province was affected by swirling winds and violent storms, so we went to the fields. We think the most important factor is to share in their [farmers’] willpower and woes. This is not new to the CPP, but we, the next generation, will help more.

Do you believe young members of the CPP should seek to lead the country in the same way their leaders have, or should they have a different vision?
The CPP says the first thing the party youth must understand is about what is changing.

This means we must not copy, but be creative. I also think that we need transparency, and where there is a lack of progress, we must reorganise.

We also have to gather the basics to be innovative. If we do not understand where we come from, and if we do everything by copying other countries, it is impossible. One thing an IMF representative in Cambodia said was that “The factor that will make the Kingdom of Cambodia succeed in the development of its economy is based on ‘when in Rome, do as the Romans do’. With development partners, discuss, but be creative where it is suitable in the context of Cambodia.”

And we think that for this language to be processed, the CPP Youth must clearly understand where we come from, know what those basics are. If the basics are strong as recommended by the CPP, we need to be creative with what we have irrespective of any other country. There will always be faults, but we are united better if we know what our basics are.

It is the same as a supporting beam if you want to make a roof. We have to think about where the roof is and whether there might be a high risk of the house collapsing. The achievements are not reserved for anyone or the CPP; they are combined and united, because today youth have more opportunities, so we must do what is better.

What are your ambitions for the future?
I’ve spoken enough now. Thank you.

Interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Lessons for Laos and Vietnam (Malaysian Election 2013)

Last Updated on 20 May 2013

By Roger Mitton

 

The Malaysian election two weeks ago brought great satisfaction to all dispassionate observers.

Despite some sour protests to the contrary, it showed that democracy is alive and well in Malaysia, and it sent a positive message around the region, especially to dictatorial backwaters like Laos and Vietnam.

Said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch: “Malaysian voters reaffirmed their commitment to democracy and civic participation with an amazing and peaceful 80 per cent turnout.”

As for the actual result, the governing National Front coalition and its leader, Prime Minister Najib Razak, won comfortably by 133 seats to 89 by the opposition People’s Alliance.

But hidden within that seemingly handsome 45-seat margin were some nasty gremlins that will test the PM’s character and Malaysia’s social cohesion.

After its woeful 2008 election performance, the Front’s dominant member, the United Malays National Organisation, quickly dumped the incumbent PM Abdullah Badawi and shunted in Najib to turn around its fortunes.

But on May 5, not only did he fail to do that, but an additional seven seats were lost, the key state of Selangor was not regained, and most shocking of all, the Front lost the popular vote by a margin of almost 400,000.

It was the narrowest election victory in Malaysian history.

Only among rural Malays in its northern heartland did the Front’s vote hold up. It clawed back Kedah state and made gains in Kelantan and Perak.

But it lost ground heavily in the richer and more politically strategic states of Johor and Selangor, as well as in Najib’s home state of Pahang and in resource rich Sabah.

That said, while the opposition alliance, under its dynamic leader Anwar Ibrahim, did extremely well in urban and non-Malay areas, it failed to win over the huge vote bank of rural Malay Muslims.

The Alliance’s star performer was its Chinese component, the Democratic Action Party, which won a stunning 38 seats – second only to UMNO in the party rankings.

As well, the DAP’s veteran leader Lim Kit Siang hammered the Johor chief minister in the election’s most watched constituency of Gelang Patah.

In contrast, the government’s main Chinese partner won only seven seats, despite massive resources and government sweetners.

Najib called the setback an unexpected “Chinese tsunami”, but in fact the giant wave of discontent began 40 years ago when non-Malays were officially designated as second-class citizens.

The PM had sought to pare back the apartheid-like Malay privileges, but he simply lacked the clout within UMNO to do it.

Still, his anti-reformist opponents within the Front’s more rabid Islamic wing were themselves soundly defeated – as were many of the opposition’s fundamentalist members.

So another positive aspect of the election was the way it confirmed that a majority of Malaysians have no time for Islamic extremists. So where does all this leave Najib and Anwar?

Well, the elder Anwar, 65, had promised to step down if the Alliance did not win the election, but he has already reversed that vow.

If anything, the electorate’s message to Anwar was that he should cede the opposition leadership to someone whose personal life is less tainted and whose political decision-making less erratic.

As for Najib, 59, while he is better off, his failure to reverse the opposition gains made in the last election and his penchant for dithering, means that his grip on the premiership is far from secure.

Later this year, UMNO will hold its annual assembly and it is virtually certain that calls will be made for a leadership review.

The chances are they will fail, not because of Najib’s performance, but because there is a dearth of dynamic and visionary figures in the senior ranks of the party.

Consequently, the incremental gains by the opposition are likely to steadily continue and one day a tsunami will wash away the ruling party’s half-century hold on power – and the world will not end.  

ការក្រាញ​អំណាច​ជា «ជំងឺ» របស់​សង្គម​ខ្មែរ

ដោយ ប៉ែន បូណា (Radio France International-IRI)
ពុធ 08 ឧសភា 2013

សេចក្តីថ្លែងការណ៍​របស់​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ហ៊ុន សែន កាលពីដើម​សប្តាហ៍​នេះ​ដែល​ថា លោក​នឹង​បន្ត​កាន់តំណែង​រហូតដល់​អាយុ​ជាង​៧០​ឆ្នាំ​នោះ បាន​បង្កើត​ឲ្យ​មាន​ការ​ជជែក​គ្នា​យ៉ាង​ផុលផុស​អំពី​អាណត្តិ​របស់​មេដឹកនាំ​ កម្ពុជា។ មតិ​ខ្លះ​បាន​រិះគន់​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី​ថា​នៅ «ក្រាញ​អំណាច» ទោះបីជា​ខ្លួន​កាន់​តំណែង​យូរហើយ​ក៏ដោយ។ ប៉ុន្តែ ប្រសិនបើ​គេ​ពិចារណា​ឲ្យ​ស៊ីជម្រៅ ការ​ក្រាញ​អំណាច​មិនមែន​ជា​រឿង​ដាច់​ដោយ​ឡែក​របស់​បុគ្គល​ណា​ទេ តែ​វា​ជា «ជំងឺ​សង្គម»​ខ្មែរ​ដែល​ត្រូវតែ​រួមគ្នា​ព្យាបាល។ តើ​ជំងឺ​នេះ​មាន​ឫសគល់​មកពីណា?

នៅ​កម្ពុជា ផ្លូវ​ឡើងទៅ​កាន់អំណាច​គឺជា​រឿង​ដ៏​លំបាក​មួយ​ទៅហើយ ប៉ុន្តែ ការចាកចេញ​ពី​អំណាច​​វិញ​វា​រឹត​តែ​លំបាក​ថែមទៀត។ លំបាក​នៅ​ត្រង់​ថា «វប្បធម៌​ក្រាញ​អំណាច»​កំពុង​ចាក់ឫស​និង​បាន​ក្លាយជា​«ជំងឺ​សង្គម»​មួយ​ដែល​ គួរតែ​នាំគ្នា​រក​វិធី​ព្យាបាល។

ការ​ចោទ​អ្នក​នេះ​ឬអ្នក​នោះ​ថា​ក្រាញ​អំណាច​ គ្រាន់តែ​ជាការ​បាចទឹក​ដាក់គ្នា​តែប៉ុណ្ណោះ​ ពី​ព្រោះនេះ​មិនមែនជា​បញ្ហា​ដោយឡែក​របស់​បុគ្គល​ណា​ម្នាក់​ឡើយ តែ​វា​ជា​បញ្ហា​រួម​របស់​សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​ទាំងមូល។ នៅក្នុង​រដ្ឋាភិបាល អ្នកដឹកនាំ​តែងតែ​ការពារ​អំណាច​រហូត​ដល់​ដំណាក់កាល​ចុង​ក្រោយ។ នៅក្នុង​បក្ស​ក្រៅ​រដ្ឋាភិបាល​ឯណោះ​វិញ វប្បធម៌​នៃ​ការផ្តល់​តម្លៃ​ទៅលើ​បុគ្គល​ដែល​ជា​«តួឯក»​នយោបាយ​ក៏​កំពុង​ចាក់ ​ឫស​យ៉ាងរឹងមាំ​ណាស់​ដែរ។

ជាក់ស្តែង នៅពេល​គេ​និយាយ​ពី​គណបក្ស​កាន់អំណាច គេ​សំដៅ​ដល់​លោក​នាយក​រដ្ឋមន្ត្រី ហ៊ុន សែន។ នៅក្នុង​គណបក្ស​សម រង្ស៊ី គេ​និយាយ​តែ​ពី​លោក​សម រង្ស៊ី ខណៈដែល​គណបក្ស​សិទ្ធិមនុស្ស​គេ​និយាយ​តែ​ឈ្មោះ​លោក​កឹម សុខា។ តួអង្គ​នយោបាយ​ទាំងនោះ​ត្រូវបាន​គេ​លើក​តម្កើង​ថា​ជា​មនុស្ស​យ៉ាង​សំខាន់។ សំខាន់​រហូត​ដល់​ពេល​ខ្លះ​បញ្ហា​ប្រជាធិបតេយ្យ ឬក៏​ស្ថិរភាព​របស់​ប្រទេស​ទាំងមូល ត្រូវបាន​គេ​ចង​ភ្ជាប់​ជាមួយ​នឹង​បុគ្គល​តែ​ម្នាក់។ នៅ​កម្ពុជា កុំ​ថា​ឡើយ​ដល់​ទៅ​ផ្លាស់ប្តូរ​មេដឹកនាំ​ប្រទេស សូម្បី​តែ​ប្តូរ​មេបក្ស​នយោបាយ​មួយ​ក៏​ជា​បញ្ហា​ដែរ។

នៅក្នុង​ពិភព​សង្គម​ស៊ីវិល​ក៏​មិនសូវ​ជា​ខុសគ្នា​ប៉ុន្មាន​ដែរ។ បុគ្គល​ដែលជា​មេដឹកនាំ​ច្រើនតែ​កាន់អំណាច​រយៈពេល​យ៉ាងយូរ​ ដោយ​មិន​ព្រម​ប្រគល់​ឲ្យ​ទៅ​អ្នកដទៃ​ឡើយ។ តើ​នេះ​មិនមែន​ជា​«វប្បធម៌​លើក​ស្ទួយ​បុគ្គល» ដែល​ជា​ឫសគល់​នៃ​«ជំងឺ​ក្រាញ​អំណាច» នៅក្នុង​សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​ទេ​ឬ?

ដើម្បី​ស្វែងយល់​ពី​បញ្ហា​នេះ គេ​គួរ​ពិនិត្យ​មើល​មូលហេតុ​មួយ​ចំនួន​ដូច​តទៅ៖

មូលហេតុ​ទី១ ៖ គឺ​បញ្ហា​មុខមាត់។ ជាទូទៅ សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​ច្រើន​តែ​ឲ្យ​តម្លៃ​ខ្លាំង​ពេក​ទៅលើ​តំណែង។ ក្នុងន័យនេះ ការបាត់បង់​មុខតំណែង​ត្រូវគេ​ចាត់ទុកថា ជា​ការបាក់​មុខមាត់​យ៉ាងខ្លាំង។ ហេតុដូច្នេះ​ហើយ​បានជា​អ្នកមាន​មុខតំណែង​តែង​ក្រាញ​មិន​ចង់​ចុះចេញ​ដោយ​ងាយៗ ​ឡើយ។

មូលហេតុ​ទី២ ៖ ការ​ក្រាញ​អំណាច​ គឺ​ជា​ផលវិបាក​នៃ​នយោបាយ​សងសឹក​គ្នា​តាម​យុទ្ធសាស្ត្រ​«អ្នកឈ្នះ​ជា​វីរជន រីឯ​អ្នកចាញ់​ជា​ជន​ក្បត់ជាតិ»។ ទស្សនៈ​នេះហើយ​ដែល​ជំរុញ​ឲ្យ​មេដឹកនាំ​មិន​ងាយ​បោះបង់​អំណាច។ ប្រសិនបើ​ត្រូវ​បោះបង់​ក៏​ពួកគេ​រៀប​ជើង​ព្រួល​ទុកជាមុន​ឲ្យ​ហើយ​ដែរ។

មូលហេតុ​ទី៣ ៖ ប្រព័ន្ធ​ច្បាប់​ដែល​មិន​បាន​កំណត់​អាណត្តិ​របស់​មេ​ដឹកនាំ​ ក៏​ជា​ឱកាស​ដែល​បើកផ្លូវ​ឲ្យ​អ្នកដឹកនាំ​តោង​អំណាច​តាម​ដែល​អាចធ្វើ​ទៅបាន។

ដូច្នេះ ដើម្បី​ព្យាបាល​«ជំងឺ​ក្រាញ​អំណាច» សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​ចាំបាច់​ត្រូវ​ផ្លាស់ប្តូរ​ផ្នត់​គំនិត​មួយ​ចំនួន​ជា​ចាំបាច់។ ជាបឋម គេ​គួរ​យល់ថា មុខតំណែង​ជាពិសេស​តំណែង​ដឹកនាំ​កំពូល​របស់​ប្រទេស​មិនមែនជា​កម្មសិទ្ធិ​ ផ្តាច់មុខ​របស់​អ្នកណា​ម្នាក់​ឡើយ តែ​វា​គ្រាន់តែ​ជាទី​លាន​បង្ហាញ​សមត្ថភាព​របស់​អ្នកដឹកនាំ​ឲ្យ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​ បាន​ឃើញ​ក្នុង​រយៈពេល​កំណត់​ណា​មួយ​តែ​ប៉ុណ្ណោះ ពោលគឺ​វា​មិន​ខុសពី​សង្វៀន​ប្រកួត​កីឡា​នោះឡើយ។ ការឡើង​ ឬ​ចុះ​ពីស​ង្វៀន​នេះ​ គឺជា​រឿង​ធម្មតា​ដែល​គ្មានអ្វី​គួរ​ឲ្យ​ខ្មាស់អៀន​ឡើយ។ ផ្ទុយទៅវិញ ការ​ស្ថិតនៅក្នុង​មុខតំណែង​យូរ​ពេក កំហុស​ក៏​អាច​កើតមាន​កាន់តែ​ច្រើន​ដែរ។

ក្នុង​បរិបទ​នេះ កា​រៀបចំ​ឲ្យ​មាន​ប្រព័ន្ធ​ផ្លាស់ប្តូរ​មេដឹកនាំ​ដោយ​ធានា​បាន​នូវ​ សុវត្ថិភាព​របស់​អ្នក​ចេញពី​អំណាច​ផង និង​ស្ថិរភាព​សង្គម​ទាំងមូល​ផង គឺជា​មូលដ្ឋាន​សំខាន់​ជាងគេ​មួយ។ ប៉ុន្តែ មេដឹកនាំ​ប្រទេស​ក៏​មិនត្រូវ​ប្រព្រឹត្ត​បំពាន​អំណាច​ណា​មួយ​ដែរ​នៅក្នុង​ អាណត្តិ​ដឹកនាំ​របស់ខ្លួន​ដើម្បី​ចៀសវាង​ការចោទប្រកាន់​ពេលចេញ​ពីមុខ​តំណែង។ តុលាការ​កាត់ទោស​អតីត​មេដឹកនាំ​ខ្មែរក្រហម​ដែល​កំពុង​ដំណើរការ​នៅ​ពេលនេះ​ គួរតែ​ជា​មេរៀន​សម្រាប់​មេដឹកនាំ​ខ្មែរ ហើយ​ព្រឹតិ្តការណ៍​បែបនេះ​ក៏​មិនគួរ​នឹង​កើតឡើង​ជាថ្មីទៀត​ដែរ។

សរុប​មកវិញ វត្ថុធាតុ​ដើម​សម្រាប់​ផ្សំ​ជា​ឱសថ​ព្យាបាល​«ជំងឺ​ក្រាញ​អំណាច»​នៅក្នុង​ សង្គម​ខ្មែរ​មាន​អស់​ហើយ។ ដូច្នេះ ដល់​ពេល​ហើយ​​ដែល​ត្រូវ​នាំគ្នា​ព្យាបាល​ជំងឺ​នេះ​ឲ្យ​អស់ពី​សង្គម៕

SOUTH AFRICA: Three universities pilot doctoral supervision course

Ishmael Tongai04 May 2013 Issue No:270

An innovative course that aims to produce a new generation of doctoral supervisors kicked off this year at three South African universities. The plan is to roll out the free course to other universities to raise the country’s PhD output.

The seven-week course was piloted at Rhodes University, the University of Fort Hare and Durban University of Technology.

It is structured around four themes – power relations in supervision, the importance of scholarship, supervisor practices and supervisor processes – and started when this year’s semester began in February.

The initiative received funding of €1 million (US$1.3 million) from the Netherlands Organisation for International Cooperation in Higher Education, or NUFFIC.

The course was developed by a consortium consisting of four South African universities – Rhodes, Stellenbosch, Cape Town and Fort Hare – and three Dutch institutions – Vrije University Amsterdam, the African Studies Centre at Leiden University and the International Institute for Social Studies in The Hague.

The project team spent last year developing the course before launching it at a November National Research Foundation meeting attended by university representatives.

The PhD supervision course

The seven-week course has three phases: an initial four-day face-to-face phase facilitated by one Dutch and one South African academic; a six week online period; and a three-day face-to face phase facilitated by the South African facilitator involved in the first phase.

“Most supervisors have no training in supervision. They supervise on the basis of how they were supervised. Yet students have changed and the academic field has changed,” Rhodes University’s Professor Chrissie Boughey told University World News.

Boughey, who co-leads the project with Dr Harry Wels of Vrije University Amsterdam in The Netherlands, said the quality of supervision could impact on a doctoral candidate's ability to succeed as well as time taken to complete and the quality of the thesis, among other things.

She said that in South Africa, where there are diverse experiences in higher education, the course would try to leverage knowledge, as some students would have been privileged in doing previous degrees at universities with a strong research tradition while others would have little experience of what research involves.

Boughey said that as more and more research is now interdisciplinary and uses a wider range of orientations and methods, some supervisors who have little experience of working outside one methodological tradition will also benefit from the course.

Studies have shown that the top five regular producers of research articles in South Africa – the universities of Cape Town, Pretoria, KwaZulu-Natal, Stellenbosch and the Witwatersrand – have large number of permanent academic staff with doctoral degrees.

South Africa hopes to radically increase its number of PhD graduates and produce more than 100 doctoral graduates per million of the population by 2030. Across Africa, the current academic workforce is ageing and there is a need to produce future supervisors to replace those who will soon retire.

The roll-out

Boughey, who is also dean of teaching and learning at Rhodes University, said the roll-out of the course to other South African universities would start in the second half of 2013-15.

Funding was available to teach the course free of charge at 18 of South Africa’s 23 public universities. There are 25 places at each university offering of the course.

“Some universities have already indicated that they would like the course to be run more than once. In this case, the course will be offered at cost, but the intention is not to make any profit from it,” she said.

The number of students that universities can train depends on the individual institutions' strategic goals and how participation in the course can help to meet them, said Boughey.

For example, if a university has the goal of graduating more PhDs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, it would make sense to identify supervisors from these areas for participation.

The course is open to students who are nearing the end of their doctoral work and anyone working at a South African university who possesses a PhD.

“Our experience is that interest in the course from current doctoral students is very high,” said Boughey. Clearly, students recognised that the development offered by the course was important to their careers, she added.

The request to teach the course has to come from the university's research office, after which course facilitators visit the university in the planning stage. Discussions are mainly to try to align the course with the universities’ goals and strategic priorities.

“We try to ensure that universities nominate participants for the course who will be able to facilitate the course on their own campus later,” said Boughey.

The course materials are open source and will be made available to universities so that they can offer it for themselves, after the Dutch-funded version has been offered.

The course designers intend to use feedback from the pilots from participants and facilitators alike, and course materials will be revised accordingly, said Boughey.

She said it was hoped that the course could be taken to the rest of Africa in future, and funding for this was being sought.

UNITED KINGDOM: Why universities license degrees to foreign colleges

Nigel Healey04 May 2013 Issue No:270

 

Transnational education has become big business for UK universities. The latest data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency, HESA, reveal that the sector has more international students studying wholly offshore than on universities’ home campuses. The UK government has, in turn, become enthusiastic about the potential growth in this market.

Transnational education offers universities a way of reaching the increasing number of foreign students who want a UK degree, but who are unable or unwilling to travel to the UK for study.

Better yet, transnational education breaks the link between conventional ‘export education’ and student immigration, which is currently so politically controversial in the UK, allowing universities to grow international enrolments without the cross-border movement of students.

International students on-campus vs studying wholly overseas


Of the plethora of ways in which universities can teach foreign students in their own countries, the best known is distance learning.

Although the emergence of massive open online courses, or MOOCs, opens up the possibility that anyone with an internet connection can enrol at a major US university, distance learning has been around for decades in the guise of correspondence courses.

Indeed, the University of London has been providing international distance learning degrees since 1858, just a decade after Samuel Morse transmitted the world’s first telegraph message.

Dominating distance learning as a way of reaching foreign students, and dwarfing the high-profile offshore campuses of some Russell Group universities, is what one critic termed the ‘McDonaldisation’ of higher education.

Like a classic industrial franchise, many UK universities license a third party – usually a private, for-profit company – to deliver their degrees through a foreign college.

In 2010-11, more than 330,000 foreign students were enrolled on UK degrees through such franchisees, compared with 94,000 taking courses by distance learning and 10,000 students enrolled at satellite campuses like the University of Nottingham Malaysia.

There are many flavours of university licensing, just as there are in the corporate world.

Like McDonalds, many universities require their partners to deliver a curriculum and assessment regime that is as close as possible to the same degree on their home campus – the ‘Big Mac should taste the same in Beijing as in Birmingham’ principle.

In other cases, the university may evaluate a degree designed by the foreign partner and, if it deems it to be of acceptable quality, allow the partner to market, teach and award the qualification as a degree of the university.

Export education

Licensing degrees in this way is widely assumed to be a natural extension of export education. With public funding growing scarcer, earning revenue from international tuition provides a welcome route to diversifying and growing revenue streams.

The annual value to UK higher education of (non-European Union) international students on campus exceeds £2.5 billion (US$3.9 billion) in tuition fee income alone.

But for every student who shivers on a UK campus, there are many more who cannot come to the UK for study, either because they cannot afford the cost of tuition and board or because they are deterred by distance or cultural or religious factors.

Licensing degrees to local partners opens up this new market. Local colleges can recruit local teachers at local salaries, unlike their university partners, which need to hire expensive, highly trained academics to support their research as well as teaching.

Local colleges can focus on high-demand courses in low-cost subjects like business and management, avoiding the heavy capital costs of a traditional university campus with laboratories and research libraries.

Offering licensed degrees at much lower tuition fees, which students can study in their own countries, creates a new source of demand for UK degrees and, after deducting local costs and service fees, potentially leaves a healthy royalty for the universities involved.

The government’s policy focus on the importance of transnational education, the vast numbers of students involved and the growing professionalisation of university management, all point to licensing being driven by an overwhelmingly financial imperative.

But a recent study published in the Higher Education Quarterly, “Why do English universities really franchise degrees to overseas providers?”, suggests there may be other motives operating behind the scenes.

The study finds that licensing is a predominantly post-92 university phenomenon, with most ‘redbrick’ universities shying away from the principal-agent risk inherent in allowing a third party to recruit to, teach and-or assess a degree under the university’s badge.

Licensing developed in the 1990s in a unique set of circumstances. The post-92 universities gained degree-awarding powers in 1992 after years of being validated centres of the Council for National Academic Awards.

Unlike their redbrick counterparts, the post-92 universities had sophisticated quality assurance systems and were expert at designing curricula and assessment regimes for external audit. It was a short step from being a validated centre to becoming a validating institution.

The post-92 universities were also keen to take advantage of the growing market for international students and, as private companies began to court the ‘new’ universities to allow them to offer their degrees, licensing offered a quick and effective way of internationalising a university and raising its profile in new, otherwise inaccessible markets.

So far, so good.

But overlaying this dynamic was another feature of the 1990s, the end of the Cold War and the availability of huge sums of European Union funding for UK universities to work with former Soviet bloc counterparts and develop their curricula.

At a time when most university academics regarded themselves as providers of public goods, this created an atmosphere in which international partnerships, including licensing arrangements, were seen primarily as development aid projects, with any profit a happy by-product.

Strong affiliations

The study also finds that, a decade and a half later, many of the participants interviewed across several universities felt that licensing arrangements had been maintained for extended periods for a range of non-financial motives.

University staff developed strong affiliations with their colleagues in the partner colleges and visiting the partners provided a range of benefits from staff development, building a spirit of camaraderie among staff and, at worst, a welcome break from day-to-day teaching.

Many champions of licensing passionately believe they are supporting the educational development of the countries in which they operate.

Overall, this study challenges the notion that licensing degrees has been an aggressive strategy of market penetration by UK universities, which has the scope to be – in Universities Minister David Willetts’ words – “one of Britain’s great growth industries of the future”.

Instead, it finds that licensing has often been driven by a desire to be internationally connected and engaged in the educational development of other countries, and has been sustained over an extended period by enthusiasts with personal loyalties to colleagues thousands of kilometres away, reinforced by visits and longstanding friendships.

In the end, licensing might be ‘big business’, but while it may not be good business in financial terms, it is also not the money-grubbing cultural imperialism feared by so many of its critics.

* Nigel Healey is pro-vice-chancellor (international) at Nottingham Trent University, UK.
 

CANADA: Philanthropy, innovation and the idea of the university

David Strangway04 May 2013 Issue No:270

 

Universities in Canada are almost entirely public and funded by provincial governments. They are able to charge tuition fees, but this is also controlled by government. This means that there is very little incentive for real innovation, let alone differentiation.

Differentiation is important for innovation in a university system, but is very difficult to achieve in the Canadian system. In a number of countries there are excellent public and private universities side by side, leading to a built-in incentive for differentiation and innovation. One need only consider the United States, Mexico, Japan, and Korea, among many other nations.

Some countries have followed the German Von Humboldt model of the university, in which the research agenda sets institutional objectives.

In some countries – but not Canada – the Cardinal Newman view of the university, which provides a broad education, has thrived. This can be seen in the liberal arts and sciences universities and colleges often found in the United States. These are great universities or colleges for undergraduates and they produce a disproportionate number of great scholars.

The global ranking tables focus almost entirely on the research activities of universities. Even the Macleans rankings published annually in Canada focus on research and do not consider the student perspective.

The incentive to rise in the rankings is all about research reputation. This drives Canadian universities (and others) to be ever more homogeneous.

In Canada the research-granting agencies make contributions to the research projects they support, but they do not cover the full cost of the research. In the US the full costs of research are covered on the principle of not-for-profit but also not-for-loss. This has been a powerful tool for differentiation.

In the Canadian context, the more research undertaken, the more resources the university has to divert from undergraduate students to the graduate and research effort. Along with decreasing funding over many years on a per student basis, this movement to always favour the research agenda has led to a sharp decline in undergraduate education quality.

Philanthropy has the potential to broaden the financial base of universities. As in many countries, philanthropy in Canada has until recently been at a very low level. This only started to change in a real way in the mid-1980s.

Of course, philanthropy has been a major driver of innovation in the US for a very long time. But Canada has only in the past few years found that this is a major source for driving new activities. Two specific Canadian examples illustrate what can be done.

Philanthropy and fundraising

The University of British Columbia, or UBC, owned 500 hectares of land from its earliest days in the 1920s. Only a portion of this land had been occupied by the university and by student residences. The city of Vancouver had grown out to meet the campus.

In the 1990s it became clear that UBC was sitting on some very valuable land suitable for housing. A development company was formed and directed by real estate experts. UBC sold long-term leases to property developers.

To date this trust has raised over C$500 million (US$496 million) that has been added to the endowment fund. And there is still significant opportunity ahead. This endowment permits UBC to support academic activities.

In the 1980s a major fundraising campaign was started. In 1985, the endowment funds of UBC stood at C$80 million. Canada was only at this point ready for the move into major philanthropy. By 1994 the campaign was completed, with a total of C$270m having been raised.

At the time this was the largest ever fundraising campaign in Canadian history. It was a real turning point in Canadian philanthropy. Many newly endowed chairs and buildings were supported by these new funds, enriching academic activities.

In 2012, UBC launched a new fundraising campaign. This time the target was C$1.5 billion. Much of this has already been achieved.

In the space of 25 years philanthropy in Canada has grown from being almost non-existent to constituting a major source of innovation. Today the UBC endowment is well over C$1 billion and rising steadily. In Canada this is exceeded only by the University of Toronto.

Quest University Canada

The second example is the founding of Quest University Canada, or QUC. This small university opened its doors in 2007. It was designed from the outset to focus entirely on undergraduate students and thus to differentiate itself from all other universities in Canada.

QUC was from the beginning set up as a liberal arts and science university offering only bachelor degrees. It operates on the premise that knowledge has no academic boundaries (no academic discipline departments) and no geographic boundaries.

The small town of Squamish in British Columbia supported the venture by zoning the land that was acquired to permit the development of 1,000 units of market housing. Some land was sold at the beginning to provide start-up and planning funds.

Foundations also provided support in those early days. A very significant donor who believed in the concept provided C$100m for the campus construction. This was protected against the land asset, which can in future only be used for charitable purposes. In due course, the land asset will become an endowment for the university.

This university is now graduating its third class, but has received no public funding. Tuition is expensive since there is no government subsidy, but a large amount of the tuition supports a strong programme of student scholarships.

QUC is also different in its academic approach. Students take one course at a time that lasts for about a month. This provides intense participation in the classes as they meet three hours a day, five days a week. Classes are restricted to 20 students per class.

All students must take the first 16-month-long blocks, which are roughly half science oriented and half art and humanities oriented. This is a 21st century version of Cardinal Newman’s ‘Idea of a University’. All students live in residence. Faculty and students from 30 countries interact.

Perhaps most interesting is the fact that, without big expenditure on supporting research, the programme is able to be delivered on a per student basis for less than it would cost public universities.

There are few of the big ranking systems that focus on students and what and how they are learning. Best known is the National Survey of Student Engagement, or NSSE, that surveys 280,000 students at 750 universities in the US and Canada.

It is interesting to note that, in the five major categories of survey questions, QUC ranks well above all other Canadian universities. These categories are "level of academic challenge", "supportive campus environment", "active and collaborative learning", "enriching educational experience" and "intensity of faculty interaction".

Student demand is rising steadily as enrolment numbers approach 500 students. These are just two examples of innovation and differentiation. There are many examples around the world.

* David Strangway is former president of the University of Toronto, the University of British Columbia and the Canada Foundation for Innovation, and is founder of Quest University Canada. This is an edited version of a paper presented at the recent International Association of University Presidents semi-annual meeting in Guadalajara in March, titled “Global Trends and Latin American Higher Education Innovation”.
 

VIETNAM: Partnership with Russia for new, world-class university

Hiep Pham04 May 2013 Issue No:270

 

Vietnam is to invest some US$150 million to create a state-of-the-art university of technology in Hanoi. Russia is to be the academic sponsor, the Ministry of Education and Training announced. This is the latest in a series of partnerships forged with foreign governments and aimed at creating world-class universities.

The project will have two steps. In the first phase, from now until 2016, a Russian training institute will be established as a unit of the 47-year-old Le Quy Don Technical University. From 2016, the institution’s name will be changed to the Vietnamese Russian University of Technology.

Russian involvement in the project includes providing textbooks and curricula, granting degrees, sending professors to Vietnam to deliver courses in Russian, and hosting Vietnamese students and faculty on internships and fellowships at top Russian universities.

The official agreement is expected to be signed next month in Moscow, during a visit to Russia by Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

Ambitious project

The new institution is part of an ambitious project launched in 2006, aimed at establishing excellent universities delivering education of international standards with support and sponsorship from the world’s leading higher education countries.

Within this framework, the Vietnamese German University was established in 2008 in Ho Chi Minh City, and the University of Science and Technology in Hanoi was created in 2009 in a partnership with the French government.

Two other projects are also being negotiated, one in partnership with the Japanese government and the other with the United States.

According to experts, the new Vietnamese Russian University of Technology should be well prepared to confront the challenges faced by its two antecedent institutions.

In a recent article the local Thanh Nien – The Youth – reported that the Vietnamese German University had had difficulties recruiting sufficient numbers of students. Currently it has only 527 students, some 250 of them graduate students, within eight majors.

These numbers are far short of the university’s target of reaching 5,000 students in 29 majors by 2020. Besides the shortage of students there is a more serious dilemma: according to official data, the passing enrolment scores at the German university are much lower than those at Vietnam’s leading universities.

A similar problem has also occurred at the University of Science and Technology in Hanoi, where the student population is only around 400.

For Professor Jurgen Mallon, president of the Vietnamese German University, the preference of Vietnamese students for economic-related fields is one reason for the institution’s current difficulties.

Xenocentric behaviour among students and parents is another reason. “The best students in technology fields will choose study abroad with scholarships” instead of studying locally, Mallon told Thanh Nien in an interview.

A recent report issued by the National Assembly’s committee for culture, education, youth and children also identified obstacles to achieving ‘excellent’ universities, including lack of facilities, unsustainable financial subsidisation and – especially – a shortage of full-time, highly qualified academic staff.

Both the Vietnamese German University and the University of Science and Technology in Hanoi mainly use part-time lecturers, some from local institutions and others from their foreign university partners.

Action to tackle problems

To overcome this challenge, the University of Science and Technology is planning to send around 400 PhD students in the sciences to study in France in the coming 10 years, with the expectation of recruiting them back to become tenured lecturers in the future.

However, according to Professor Pierre Darriulat, a retired French astrophysicist who has spent more than a decade teaching physics in Hanoi, the plan to send young PhD students to France “has nothing to gain if there is no follow-up to make a good use of their skills and talents at home”.

If not, Darriulat told University World News, this would “only lead to a catastrophic brain drain”.

Darriulat, who is a member of the University of Science and Technology international scientific board, believes that the top priority for foreign-partnered and Vietnamese universities with world-class aspirations should be to make proper use of young Vietnamese postdocs present in Vietnam as well as those in the diaspora, giving the younger generation a chance to play an active part in the renaissance of higher education.

To make that happen, Darriulat suggested that universities should create a habilitation degree, in order to select university teachers of sufficient level. Institutions should also establish centres of excellence, support them, and secure reasonable wage levels, working conditions, autonomy and academic freedom.

Granting an appropriate decree of autonomy – especially in terms of funding, human resources, governance and curriculum development – to aspiring world-class universities has also been recommended by Roger Chao Jr, a PhD candidate at City University of Hong Kong, whose dissertation compares regionalisation and internationalisation processes in higher education in East Asian countries.

“If Vietnam’s government still wants to leapfrog its universities to world-class level, autonomy is prerequisite,” Chao concluded.