Why is an Ariel university so controversial?

What does the average citizen and media consumer think about opposition by university heads to the upgrading of the status of the Ariel University Center of Samaria to full (research) university status?

When Israelis read the joint statement by university presidents stating their stance against the establishment of another university, do they truly and innocently believe the excuses detailed therein or do they suspect that perhaps there is a hidden reason behind their opposition: the political view that opposes any act that expands the Jewish presence in Judea and Samaria-

There is little time left for the upgrade to take place. The Council for Higher Education in Judea and Samaria has already recommended the move, but Tel Aviv University President Professor Joseph Klafter has pointed out the financial and governmental aspects of establishing a new research-based university.

Those who believe the university heads are not politically motivated in their opposition to an Ariel university cite the fact that Professor Moshe Kaveh, the president of Bar-Ilan University, which is considered a right-wing institution, joined the petition, but I doubt that the average citizen nonetheless believes their motivation is solely based on financial concerns. He or she most likely believes the issue is political, not economic.

I remember when a handful of protesters in Tel Aviv fought to have life-science laboratories in the Abu Kabir neighborhood declared a university. Eventually they won the battle and the laboratories became what we know today as Tel Aviv University.

Veterans like myself remember the opposition of Hebrew University leaders in Jerusalem to the establishment of colleges throughout the country, in an attempt to preserve their academic hegemony. This is a well-known phenomenon, not only in the academic world.

The financial aspect in this case has inevitably been coupled with the issue of Jewish expansion in Judea and Samaria. It is unfortunate, but the truth is that Israel's academic institutions are perceived as being generally against settlements and in favor of Israel within the pre-1967 borders. True, this is a generalization, but the loudest voices in the university hallways are usually promoting one petition or another, drafted by professors or lecturers, voicing (legitimate) opposition to the settlements.

In addition, university presidents have not logically and justly arrived at the necessary conclusions concerning individual lecturers — who are certainly few but have nonetheless set the tone — supporting international academic boycotts even of the very institutions that pay their own salaries!

There is no connection whatsoever between this warped phenomenon and academic freedom. There is only one issue here: intellectual integrity — something the boycotting lecturers were not blessed with.

Add to this the refusal of actors to perform on stages in cultural centers in Kiryat Arba and Ariel, meaning the intellectual elite in Israel are perceived as opposing Jewish expansion in Judea and Samaria whether that involves cultural centers or academic centers in Ariel.

It seems that the university presidents are in dire need of the services of a public relations company to repair their reputations. Only when the existing political image of universities in Israel changes will the public believe the excuses put forth against the establishment of another research university in Israel.

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