In light of recent developments affecting academia in Serbia, EUGLOH would like to express its support for students, staff and leadership at Serbian universities.
The members of the Governing Board of EUGLOH express their unwavering commitment to academic freedom and institutional autonomy. Not only pillars of democratic societies, these universal values are fundamental to excellence and innovation in all aspects of higher education.
Universities play a vital role in advancing knowledge, fostering critical thinking, and addressing societal challenges. To fulfil these missions, they – in line with the principles of the Magna Charta Universitatum – must be able to operate independently, free from undue interference, and within an environment that supports open enquiry, academic integrity, and institutional responsibility.
Across the world, universities and their communities face pressures that challenge their ability to pursue their missions freely and independently. In such cases, it is important to remember that these values are not privileges, but essential principles. Threats to these principles, wherever they occur, concern all of us. They reverberate through the global higher education community.
In view of recent events within and beyond Europe, the EUGLOH Governing Board would therefore like to firmly and clearly reiterate its solidarity with all students, staff, and leadership who uphold these values every day.