"Dear friends and colleagues,
It is with great regret that I inform you that my request to be reappointed to a second year as Prince of Asturias Distinguished Visiting Professor of Spanish Studies at Georgetown University, which BMW-CGES director Jeff Anderson conveyed with enthusiastic support to the Spanish Ministry of Education, has been denied.
The decision blocking my appointment comes after several episodes - documented from a variety of sources - in which the Spanish Ambassador in Washington expressed distress about my appearance in the media speaking about Catalonia. The Ministry spells their reasons in administrative terms. However, the fact that the chair will be left vacant next academic year speaks for itself.
That Spanish authorities interfere for political reasons in an academic appointment, with total disregard of freedom of speech and academic freedom, is alarming and can only be qualified as censorship. I am very disappointed at this outcome as I honestly feel that pressures of this sort should not be acceptable in a respected academic institution like Georgetown.
Please do no hesitate to contact me if you have questions or suggestions regarding this regrettable affair.
Sincerely yours,
Clara Ponsatí"
It is with great regret that I inform you that my request to be reappointed to a second year as Prince of Asturias Distinguished Visiting Professor of Spanish Studies at Georgetown University, which BMW-CGES director Jeff Anderson conveyed with enthusiastic support to the Spanish Ministry of Education, has been denied.
The decision blocking my appointment comes after several episodes - documented from a variety of sources - in which the Spanish Ambassador in Washington expressed distress about my appearance in the media speaking about Catalonia. The Ministry spells their reasons in administrative terms. However, the fact that the chair will be left vacant next academic year speaks for itself.
That Spanish authorities interfere for political reasons in an academic appointment, with total disregard of freedom of speech and academic freedom, is alarming and can only be qualified as censorship. I am very disappointed at this outcome as I honestly feel that pressures of this sort should not be acceptable in a respected academic institution like Georgetown.
Please do no hesitate to contact me if you have questions or suggestions regarding this regrettable affair.
Sincerely yours,
Clara Ponsatí"
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