Support for Bosphorus University Resistance

We were at Boğaziçi University today to protest against the trustee rector appointed to Boğaziçi University. Students and student communities from different universities participated in the protest and demanded that in order for universities to be free, rectors should come through democratic elections, not appointments. With the Presidential decree dated January 1, 2021, rectors were appointed to five universities. Boğaziçi University was one of these universities. The new appointed Rector Melih Bulu was met with a backlash from students and academics, who characterized him as a trustee rector. This reaction, which started under the leadership of Boğaziçi University, was also supported by students from other universities. Students are expressing that they do not want their rectors to be appointed. They demand that the rectors take office through democratic elections within the university. Universities are of great importance for the development of countries. Universities have the very important task of conducting scientific studies and producing knowledge, and in order to fulfill this task, they must have an independent structure. The appointment procedure, on the contrary, is a practice that undermines independence in academia. When we look at the historical process, it is seen that the appointment practice is a control mechanism. This situation does not make it possible to provide the university environment that it should have. As Arayuz Campaign, we also believe that the independence of universities cannot be ensured through appointments. We support the resistance of Boğaziçi University students. We believe in the importance of this issue, which is currently on the national agenda under the leadership of Boğaziçi University, and we demand that rectors be elected in all universities and that the appointment procedure be terminated.