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Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland

Dublin City University 'reviewing relationship' with Saudi university

“Dublin City University is monitoring current developments related to Saudi Arabia and is reviewing its relationships in that context,” a DCU spokesperson confirmed this week.

DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY is reviewing its relationship with a Saudi Arabian University in light of the ongoing controversy over the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

“Dublin City University is monitoring current developments related to Saudi Arabia and is reviewing its relationships in that context,” a DCU spokesperson confirmed as Turkey says that the 59-year-old was strangled as soon as he entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last month.

DCU Student Union president Vito Moloney Burke also confirmed work was ongoing in the university on the matter, saying “any decision, either way will be done so with vigorous research”.

The spokesperson declined to say if the university would be issuing a public statement once it had concluded the review. 

DCU has retained a relationship with Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University (PNU) since the summer of 2012, when it signed an agreement to deliver two undergraduate degree programmes there: a Bachelor in Business Studies International Finance BSIF, and Bachelor of Marketing, Innovation and Technology.

PNU is one of the largest women-only universities in the world with more than 60,000 students. It is named after Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman, the sister of the founder of Saudi Arabia.

DCU has also completed an in-depth curriculum review with PNU as part of “broadening our offering from business to human performance, health science and nursing”.

Secretary of the NUJ, Séamus Dooley told TheJournal.ie that he believes any review should “take all of five minutes”.

“What I would say is that I believe they should withdraw. It is unconscionable that a college which has a distinguished record – not just in journalism but also in politics and public affairs – would be involved in an ongoing basis at this stage,” he continued.

Dooley acknowledged the decision could be financially difficult for DCU to take. He said he absolutely recognised it “could be a potentially difficult decision to DCU on an economic level but on an ethical level it’s a no brainer”.

Dooley had previously written to the President of DCU, Professor Brian MacCraith, in his role as a board member of IBEC, calling on the organisation to cancel a joint event with the Irish Saudi Arabia Business Council (ISABC).

In the letter Dooley said, “Given DCU’s distinguished role in journalism education I believe you will fully understand the gravity of this murder and I request your support for cancellation of tomorrow’s event.”

The event did not go ahead.

Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi Arabian journalist, and critic of the leadership regime in the country, was murdered in the Saudi embassy in Istanbul on 2 October.

The Turkish prosecutor investigating the case said this week that Khashoggi was strangled immediately after entering his country’s embassy in Istanbul. In a gruesome, premeditated killing, his body was then dismembered and destroyed.

Saudi authorities initially denied Khashoggi was dead, saying he had left the premises alive and well. 

DCU’s relationship with PNU has already come under scrutiny this year when it emerged that DCU was advertising positions at the university in Saudi Arabia. However, no men were allowed apply  for the positions at the all-female university.

DCU has also failed to disclose the financial relationship between the two universities.

In response to parliamentary questions tabled by Independent TD Clare Daly earlier this year, the Department of Education said, “DCU has entered into a commercial contract with the university in question for the delivery of DCU degree programmes in that university. The financial details are commercially sensitive and therefore confidential.”

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    Mute Brian Gormley
    Favourite Brian Gormley
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:32 PM

    Whilst this a tragedy and condolences to this man’s family it’s amazing how many people become an authority on how services should be provided to sufferers, if a small amount of these “experts” provided some voluntary help instead of bad mouthing the over stretched system maybe some head way might be made, just a thought

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    Mute Aasif
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:08 PM

    Should have barriers up to prevent this R.I.P

    37
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    Mute Red4fred
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:14 PM

    Should have support systems in place to prevent this. Not barriers.

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    Mute Charles Mcdonald
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:18 PM

    Exactly red. If not there it would be somewhere else. Mind you services are there just need to change mindsets and convince people it’s common to have depression and it’s perfectly fine to seek help.

    It’s a tragedy for everyone when a person sees no way out

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    Mute Exit Stage Left
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:28 PM

    How do you know it was suicide and that he was suffering from depression? He may have had a heart attack and lost control of the car?

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    Mute joanie
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 5:00 PM

    Barriers wouldn’t help , tragically a person will find another way .very sad and way too common these days .

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    Mute Michele Tobin
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 5:05 PM

    We’re all being very speculative. But in response to you comment re depression/suicide – of course its perfectly fine to seek help. But sometimes its such a bottomless pit of despair that the sufferer doesn’t realise they have symptoms of depression. Just an insight from personal experience and no amount of services will help until the person themselves realises whats going on.

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    Mute Lee Richardson
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 5:09 PM

    There are barriers and obstructions at court own which were placed as a result of similar tragedy’s

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    Mute Lorraine O'Dwyer
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 6:01 PM

    There are barriers there, this is not the first suicide off this pier. He entered the water at the side of the harbour. The barriers were put there by a local td out of his own pocket, to extend them around the whole harbour would be too exensive for one person to do. The council needs to pay for it but they dont have the money either.

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    Mute joanie
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 6:22 PM

    David , calling people idiots and stupid yet your own comment makes no sense at all !

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    Mute Jason
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 6:25 PM

    David, why call people names? Do you know exactly what happened? A guy driving a bin lorry had a heart attack in Glasgow just before Christmas. Heart attacks don’t happen at convenient times. The fact is we don’t know what happened. It may have been suicide, it may have been an accident. The story does not say and the fact that you go around calling people names for asking for perspective speaks volumes for your judgement, intelligence and manners.

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    Mute joanie
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 7:06 PM

    Jason , well said .

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    Mute jack frost
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 4:32 PM

    @exit.
    Agree , I was thinking the same..

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    Mute joanie
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 5:05 PM

    I think if it was a case of a heart attack , that information would have been published .

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    Mute Andi Garly
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 8:38 PM

    Nearly all that story is wrong anyway.

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    Mute Margaret Deacon
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    Jan 22nd 2015, 11:56 PM

    True Andy. Complete wrong report of events

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