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International News

in extremely poor financial shape, particularly Pakistan and
Sri Lanka. This leaves India carrying the burden,” he says.

ARGENTINA
Chainsaw President

IN THE WAKE OF HIS SHOCK ELECTION victory
in December, a video of new Argentinian president
Javier Milei tearing the names of government de-
partments off a whiteboard went viral on TikTok.
It shows the right-winger — sporting a distinctive pair of
huge sideburns — shouting “afuera” (get out) to ten of the
country’s 18 ministries. The tally included the Ministry of
Science, Technology and Innovation — which, he tells the
camera, belongs in the private sector — plus the Ministry of President Javier Milei: education and research slashing targets
Education “and indoctrination”, quips Milei.
The rapid rise of the chaotic, chainsaw-wielding libertar- ernment’s control of universities’ finances makes them vul-
ian politician in a country racked by economic uncertainty nerable. He has proposed a plan for schools that involves
has stunned Argentina’s research community, with many taking public money and giving it to families as “educational
fearing President Milei’s plans to dramatically slash public vouchers” that they can decide how to spend, and a similar
spending will decimate its universities and scientific infra- system might be considered for the country’s currently free
structure. On the campaign trail, Milei promised not only public universities.
to close the science ministry, but also to shut or privatise Gerardo Burton, an emeritus professor of chemistry
the National Scientific and Technical Research Council at the University of Buenos Aires, says it is still uncertain
(Conicet), one of Latin America’s most important science whether Milei will go ahead with some of his more radi-
funders, and cut state funding for research and education cal policies because his proposals had been “changing and
to bare bones. moderating as his possibility of winning the election in-
“What he is proposing is very close to a dismantlement creased”. He will formally take up the role on December 10.
of the whole system, and it will be very hard to recover if
that happens,” says Diego Golombek, a biology professor UNITED KINGDOM
at the National University of Quilmes and a researcher at Age retirement suit
Conicet, who is “extremely worried” about the new regime.
“We have a good science system: it needs more budget, it CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY IS FACING new le-
needs to go more federal and help regional economies, but gal and internal challenges to its policy of forcing
it is there and it has worked well for many decades, so any academics to retire at the age of 67. Around 120
kind of strong measures against it will be suicidal and it will current and former professors at the institution have signed
be very difficult to build it again,” adds Golombek. a letter to the recently installed vice chancellor, Deborah
Alberto Kornblihtt, a molecular biologist at the Univer- Prentice, urging her to call a vote on abolishing the Em-
sity of Buenos Aires, likens Milei’s agenda to the right-wing ployer Justified Retirement Age (EJRA) because of the risk
economic and political programme of the military dictator- of “brain drain”.
ships that ruled the country between 1976-1983, but this The university has already instigated a wide-ranging
time with “massive popular support” and a democratic review of the policy — which has been used since 2012 to
mandate, something that is “not good news” for science, ensure older professors are moved off the payroll and to
universities, public health and education. “If he keeps his open up opportunities for younger academics — after Ox-
promises, not only will the budget cuts for research be huge, ford University, the only other English institution to enforce
but also institutions like Conicet risk being dismantled, with retirement, lost a legal case against four of its former staff
the obvious consequence of brain drain,” he warns. members.
The directors of Conicet’s 16 science and technology re- Cambridge now also faces being sued over the EJRA
search centres — which fund about 12,000 researchers — itself for the first time after Ross Anderson, a computer
spoke out against plans to close the organisation before the science professor who was forced to retire in September,
election, warning in a joint statement: “We still have many signalled his intention to launch a claim for unfair dismissal
challenges, many issues to improve, but it is not by cancel- and discrimination.
ling the state that a better country will be achieved.” Although he continues to work for the university once
President Milei has been less clear about his plans for a week, Prof Anderson, who will be represented by the law
the wider higher education system, but the national gov- firm Doyle Clayton, says he feels he has been “cut off in

66 EDUCATIONWORLD JANUARY 2024