Belgian university disputes Chinese account of a meeting with top academic officials

The rector at a top Belgian university has denied that he agreed to promote China's positions in Europe, refuting a report published on a Chinese government website.

Chinese ambassador to the European Union Fu Cong met staff at Ghent University earlier this month and held "in-depth exchanges on topics such as European academic circles' perception of China", according to an account of the meeting posted in Chinese on the embassy's website.

The account also said that "the president and the participating scholars agreed that they are willing to actively convey China's position and voice to the European academic circles".

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When contacted by the South China Morning Post, however, the rector, Rik Van de Walle, said that no such commitment was made.

"Ghent University wants to emphasise that this statement was not actually made during the meeting," the university's press office stated on Van de Walle's behalf.

"Scholars of Ghent University can of course freely formulate any opinion or position, but always do so on their own behalf. Consequently, they are not expressing China's - or any other country's - opinion or position on behalf of Ghent University."

The statement added: "Consequently, the rector does not and will not actively convey China's position and voice to the European academic community."

The Chinese mission to the European Union did not respond to a request for comment, but the post remains published on its website in its original form.

Ghent University declined to say whether it had asked the mission to clarify its post.

However, university spokeswoman Tine Dezeure said that the institution hoped to "further deepen cooperation with China's higher education and scientific research institutes, contribute to the promotion of cultural exchanges between Europe and China and to the formation of a rational and objective understanding of China in Europe".

Ghent University, in Belgium's Flanders region, is the country's second-ranked university, according to Times Higher Education, and the 107th ranked globally.

The incident comes as European academic institutions' engagements with Beijing draw increased scrutiny.

In Belgium, lawmakers are waging a campaign to close the country's remaining Confucius Institutes.

"We advocate learning Chinese in our universities. But we must forcefully reject the manipulation of academic discourse and research by foreign powers, which undermines our democracies from within," Samuel Cogolati, a Green member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives.

"What we want to prevent in Belgium is Beijing's interference in our courses and research," he added.

Last week, in its new China strategy, the German government vowed to make such academic exchanges more transparent.

"German institutions must be aware of the freedoms they enjoy and the responsibility that comes with this," read a section of the strategy paper that referred directly to Confucius Institutes.

"We expect a maximum of transparency and that activities be open to public inspection, particularly when government funding is employed for cooperation with China. Researchers and teachers, too, share in this responsibility."

Ivana Karaskova, a special adviser to the European Commission on Chinese influence in the bloc, said that even with its denial, the university's pledge to work towards the "formation of a rational and objective understanding of China in Europe" was worrisome.

"It translates into ... Ghent University is willing to act as the megaphone of Chinese propaganda in Europe. I find it hard to believe that any European reputable academic institution would willingly subscribe to this as it is against the principles of academic freedom and integrity," Karaskova said.

Alexander Dukalskis, an associate professor at University College Dublin and the author of Making the World Safe for Dictatorship, said that since the note was published only in Chinese, it may have only been intended to impress headquarters.

"It suggests that the audience was internal - to basically say to bosses and colleagues: 'Hey, look at what a successful meeting we had.' My guess is that its authors never gave much thought to it being picked up more broadly," Dukalskis said.

He added: "It puts university leadership in an awkward spot, but one they really have to clarify. If they agreed to this language then there are some deep problems, but if they were wrong-footed then they really should vigorously and publicly reaffirm that this is not how they see things."

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

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