Persecuted Scholars Arrive

Academics from Turkey, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Iraq are arriving at Harvard this week to join two visiting fellows as a part of the Scholars at Risk (SAR) Program, a program that allows scholars facing persecution in their home countries to conduct research at universities in safety.

The SAR fellowship network, which began in 2000 at New York University, first placed scholars at Harvard in 2001. Under the direction of the University Committee on Human Rights Studies, the Harvard program has thus far invited 10 scholars to Cambridge. This year, the program will fund an unprecedented six scholars, whereas previous years saw two scholars at most.

The Harvard program received a financial boost this year after receiving a $1.2 million donation from three supporters, two of whom are Harvard alumni.

Two of the six Harvard fellows for the 2005-2006 academic year are returning to the SAR for the second consecutive year.

Of the six scholars, the identities of only three have been released. Alp Ayan, a psychiatrist from Turkey, will conduct research at Mass. General Hospital while Noel Twagiramungu, a lawyer from Rwanda, and Samuel Ngayhembako, a theologian from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, will join the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African-American Research.

In addition to the six fellows formally affiliated with SAR, two SAR scholars from previous years have also remained on campus and taken up positions at the University.

Saleh Abdel Jawad, a Palestinian professor of political science, has joined the History Department of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, while Mehrangiz Kar, an Iranian human rights activist, journalist, and lawyer, is now a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Kennedy School of Government.

Cogan University Professor Steven J. Greenblatt, who chairs the Harvard SAR program, said SAR is particularly relevant to Harvard because it is a human rights program that is also based on scholarship.

“What’s special about this program—compared to other human rights programs—is that it’s about being scholars,” said Greenblatt, a professor of English literature. “It’s really the same as what we do here.”

Greenblatt added that the program—most of whose scholars remain at Harvard for one year before returning home or pursuing other opportunities—often benefits the scholars by raising their public profiles.

“Being here for one year and the prominence that Harvard provides brings a measure of security,” Greenblatt said. “The reason that scholars are often persecuted is because [political leaders] think that no one is looking. These are very brave people to do what they do.”

The SAR network has thus far arranged for over 100 scholars to flee their countries and take academic positions in safer nations.

While most of the destination schools are top-tier U.S. colleges and universities, the list includes schools from Thailand, Serbia, Canada, Mexico, and South Africa, among others.

Later today, the SAR network will host a forum at the Carr Center with five of the current scholars, as well as Jawad and Kar. The event will be held in Neustadt Hall in the Rubenstein Building and will run from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.