March 9 Movement for the Independence of Universities has chosen three important issues to be discussed during its sixth annual conference. This conference is due to be held next Tuesday at Cairo University's Hall of the Center for Development Research and Technological Planning. For the first time ever, the movement has invited the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) to its conference. The event is expected to be attended by Hossam Badrawi, professor at Cairo Faculty of Medicine, in his capacity as Chairman of the NDP Committee on Education, to discuss the NDP's vision on the independence of universities.
The movement will hold two sessions to discuss these three issues. The first session will discuss the independence of universities in the Constitution. The meeting will be headed by Tahani al-Gebali, Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Constitutional Court. Abdel Moneim el-Gomei, professor of contemporary history at Fayyoum University, will comment on the discussion. The meeting will also discuss the independence of universities and academic freedom in the NDP Committee on Education's agenda. The issue will be discussed by Badrawi and commented on by Omar el-Sebakhy, Professor at the Faculty of Engineering of Alexandria University.
The second session will discuss the issue of combining civil and private universities in a unified law. The issue will be discussed by Mohamed Ghoneim, professor of nephrology at Mansoura Faculty of Medicine, and by Mohaya Zaiytoun, Professor at the Faculty of Commerce of Ain Shams University. The meeting will also discuss the issue of international donors and their relation with and impact on Egyptian universities. This issue will be discussed by Mustafa Kamel el-Sayed, Professor at the Faculty of Economics and Political Science of Cairo University, and by Hani el-Husseini, Professor at the Faculty of Science of Cairo University.
Mohammed Abul Ghar, the movement's spiritual father, said the movement decided to discuss the issues relating to the University in the presence of NDP officials. They did so because they want to know the NDP insists on rejecting the principle of the independence of universities although the Constitution and many international conventions stipulate such principle.
