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https://theconversation.com/ministerial-interference-is-an-attack-on-academic-freedom-and-australias-literary-culture-174329>
"On Christmas Eve, many researchers across the country received the news that
their Australian Research Council (ARC) funding applications had failed. For
most of them, this was disappointing but not surprising: the success rate for
the scheme is 19%.
Six research teams were informed they had been recommended for funding within
this competitive pool, but the acting Education Minister Stuart Robert had
vetoed their applications. The rationale provided was that the vetoed projects
“do not demonstrate value for taxpayers’ money nor contribute to the national
interest”.
The focus of Robert’s veto is particularly worrying: all the rejected projects
are in the humanities, and four of the six are in literary studies. The
applications that were vetoed offer a snapshot of how literature has long been
part of everyday life, examining topics such as Elizabethan theatre, popular
narratives, science fiction and fantasy.
This shows a wilful ignorance of the value that literature and its study
provide to Australia’s society, culture and economy. It is an affront to the
principle of independence that should underpin research funding in a democracy.
It disregards the expertise and time of the thousands of scholars involved in
the process of writing and assessing these applications.
The Australian University Heads of English, the peak body for the study and
research of literature in Australia, has released a statement calling on the
minister to “reinstate the defunded projects and commit to legislating the
complete independence of the ARC from government interference and censorship.”
Thus far, the more than 800 signatories to the statement include many of
Australia’s most brilliant writers: Alexis Wright, J.M. Coetzee, Randa
Abdel-Fattah, Gail Jones, Delia Falconer, Natalie Harkin, Peter Goldsworthy,
Amanda Lohrey, Evelyn Araluen, Michelle de Kretser, Maria Tumarkin, and Roanna
Gonsalves."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
