Summarised by Centrist
New Zealand universities are increasingly considering standalone free speech policies, spurred by the University of Otago’s recent statement and an anticipated amendment to the Education and Training Act 2020.
The Free Speech Union has engaged with most universities, praising Otago’s policy as the “gold standard.”
This change, part of the National-Act coalition agreement, will require taxpayer-funded tertiary institutions to adopt free speech policies. Other universities are at various stages of developing their policies.
The University of Auckland is finalising its policy, while Victoria University of Wellington and Lincoln University are still in the consideration phase. Massey University has approved an Academic Freedom Policy, and AUT has adopted a Charter of Academic Freedom. Some universities, like Waikato and Canterbury, believe existing policies suffice.
The Free Speech Union’s chief executive, Jonathan Ayling, told NewstalkZB:
“It’s easy to think hate speech, harmful speech, we don’t want these ideas around we’ll just stop them. The question is, who gets to decide what is hateful or harmful, and how you go about stopping them.”
