Algiers
Two hundred teachers from the National University of Algeria have signed a statement condemning what they call the orchestrated campaign against the Algerian army in a book, La Sale Guerre (The Dirty War), written by Mohammed Said, a dissident soldier. The book alleges atrocities carried out by the Algerian army in their war against Islamic Fundamentalists.
Tunis
Human Rights Watch and other agencies concerned with academic freedom have called on Tunisian president Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali to intervene to stop escalating attacks on pro-democracy academics.
Karlsruhe
German students who are too lazy to get out of bed can follow lectures online through a national internet radio station pioneered by a group of universities. Broadcasting started last week at Karlsruhe University, with Freiburg, Konstanz, Mannheim and Kehl to follow.
Details: http:///193.196.117.69/ihr
Brussels
The United Kingdom last week ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, which aims to promote these languages' written and spoken use. The charter excludes dialects of official and migrants' languages but gives special treatment to non-territorial languages such as Yiddish or Romany.
Guatemala City
Guatemala's education minister, Mario Torres, has called on radical minority groups of university students and professors, who are opposing the country's national literacy campaign, to desist from sabotage and protest marches and to discuss their demands with the ministry. About 70,000 students are engaged in a campaign to teach 326,000 Guatemalans to read and write.
Kuala Lumpur
Every Malaysian state will have a university by 2002 after the cabinet approved the establishment of four technology-based institutions of higher education. Universities will be set up in Pahang, Malacca and Perlis, while Kuala Lumpur's Kolej Universiti Islam Malaysia will move to a campus in Negri Sembilan.