The affair surrounding the appointment of Rima Hassan as godmother of the law and criminology graduating class at ULB has sent shockwaves through the academic and political world.
Georges-Louis Bouchez, MR President and former ULB student, has taken a firm stand to directly challenge the university authorities. He denounces the ideological drift, arguing it is unacceptable for someone who displays hostility towards the West and supports organisations deemed dangerous to our democracy to be elevated to the status of role model for generations of future lawyers.
Through this stance, the MR reaffirms its commitment to academic freedom, intellectual rigour and the pluralism of ideas, rejecting any attempt to bow to pressure from an extremist fringe. This heated debate highlights one of the MR's core demands: ensuring that universities remain places of critical thinking, free from political manipulation, and that the training of society's future actors is grounded in tolerance, responsibility and commitment to democracy's fundamental values.
More than ever, the neutrality of institutions must never be sacrificed, and it must be remembered that the university's mission is not to give in to a logic of confrontation.