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Toyoshima's blog

People's Network Against the Plan to Destroy Japan's National Universities

executive secretary : TOYOSHIMA Kouichi, Prof. of Physics, Univ. of Saga
This Network was dissolved on Aug. 25, 2004. This site is maintained for archiving.

Main site | Mirror Site | Japanese page

full text of the plea

petition form

related articles

supporters' list

pdf - compact

Message from Professor Richard Gombrich, Fellow of Balliol College, UK

What's new (Last update: March 19, 2004)

Chronicle of Higher Education, March 12th issue reported the issue
>> 30 days free trial

Invitation to the symposium on the University Corporation Law
September 27, 10 a.m.--5:30 p.m., Tokyo

The Upper House passed the bill with pros 131 and cons 101 on June 9.
The system which breaches the Article 23 of the Constitution is illegal.

THE CONSTITUTION OF JAPAN

Article 23 Academic freedom is guaranteed.

Article 98 This Constitution shall be the supreme law of the nation and no law, ordinance, imperial rescript or their act of government, or part thereof, contrary to the provisions hereof, shall have legal force or validity.

Message from Prof. Noam Chomsky (23/6/03)
Handout for an International Press Conference (provisional)

( in Japanese)

Joint statement with the Korean Professor Unions
　link to the briefing by KPU
Link to KPU


click to enlarge

( in Japanese)

Speech by Toyoshima at the press conference on June 10 in Seoul

Member list of the Education Committee in the Upper House ( Exel file )
The bill passed the Committee in the Lower House on May 16 (letter to colleagues abroad)
New message from Prof. Gombrich (13 May 2003)
Letter to supporters including information on recent development (12 May 2003)
E-mail list of members of the Committee on Education and Science in the House of Representatives

Translation of the proposed law completed

An article on merging universities in Japan appeared in The Chronicle of Higher Education(21/2/03)
On merging of universities (mail to The Chronicle of Higher Education, Thu, 6 Feb 2003)
World Federation of Scientific Workers supports our Appleal to UNESCO(21/11/02)
Mail of the WFSW President
Appeal to UNESCO (16/10/02) | French version

Alleged "independence" may deprive universities of their freedom (translation from a weekly magazine 'Syukan Kin-yobi' April 19, 2002 issue)
On recent development after the release of the "final report" of the Ministry of Education (24/5/02)
Talk with Korean Professors Union, March 2, 2002 at Seoul

On the General Meeting of the Association of National Universities (June 2001)

Japanese government is planning to change the national universities into the so-called "Independent Administrative Institute" (IAI). The prefix "Independent" is misleading, because under this proposed regime the universities would be given their objectives by the Minister and be forced to meet the direct demands of the national government. Moreover the Minister of Education can even abolish any university if he/she thinks it is "bad".

Obviously this greatly harms the academic freedom of Japan's national universities. As a matter of course, many professors as well as faculties at national universities have expressed their concern.

We invite all who love universities and appreciate the academic freedom and the autonomy of universities to take part in our People's Network for blocking the plan.

Although it is true that Japan's national universities chiefly serve Japanese people directly, they also serve mankind indirectly. So we ask for and welcome support from all over the world.

For the moment the full detail of our plan of the People's Network is mostly written in Japanese. Please take a look at the following pages if you read Japanese. We will translate the documents into as many languages as possible shortly.

Plea in Japanese
znet/plea-znet.html

Various information on this issue in English, including government's explanation
http://fcs.math.sci.hokudai.ac.jp/dgh/e-index.html
Japanese page
http://www.geocities.co.jp/CollegeLife-Cafe/3141/dgh/

The IAI Act (in Japanese*)
extract
full text


*We are trying to find a translater.