ONTARIO, KOMPAS.com – A professor at York University in Ontario, Canada, was removed from his class earlier this week.
The policy was taken by the university after a snippet of its email conversation went viral. Its contents show him scolding and threatening to thwart a student from Myanmar.
The Professor’s actions were known to be aimed at students who were unable to take the midterm exam.
The student, who is known to be in Myanmar, explained his obstacles to taking the exam due to an internet blackout imposed by the Myanmar military junta.
A screenshot of the email shows the student asking the math and statistics professor, Emanoil Theodorescu, to postpone their midterms.
The student also explained that he had recently learned that the Myanmar military would impose another internet blackout.
“I just found out that starting tomorrow all cellular data services, wifi and internet will be cut off indefinitely. Therefore, there will be a total blackout of communication, “explained the student.
But according to screenshots from the second email conversation Theodorescu replied: “There is no suspension. These (test results) are transferred to the final exam. Last chance, a bad sign.”
“Even the internet went down with Covid19?” sarcastically.
The student responded by trying to explain the situation in Myanmar, which has been rocked by protests and civil unrest since the military staged a coup since February.
“Nearly 200 protesters have been shot (up to) now. The regime has decided to shut down all communications tomorrow,” said the student.
When the student asked if the final exam would account for 60 percent of their score, Theodorescu replied, “something like that.”
“Ok Professor. Thank you. So I don’t have to worry if I miss tomorrow’s exam?” asked the student.
“Of course you should. Next time you miss something, it’s over,” replied the Professor.
Also read: 231 People Killed Killed by Military Junta in Myanmar’s Anti-coup Protests
“By the way, your remarks (both related to this class and to your home country) make me wonder how you understand reality,” he added.
“People don’t get shot just for protest, but for a much deeper reason. And loading everything up on the final exams – it’s going to be hard to pass this class – for lack of practice, nothing else.”
Screenshots of the communication were uploaded to Twitter on Thursday (17/3/2021) and quickly sparked outrage.
In a statement on Friday (18/3/2021), York University said it was committed to ensuring “respect, equality, diversity and inclusion.”
The university also alluded to the problem of a recent viral conversation between a Math & Statistics Department instructor and a student, which did not reflect these values.
They assured all parties that the senior staff from the Faculty had been in direct contact with the student the night after the conversation took place.
“Teachers clearly state their support for the situation and welfare of students who are in difficult situations. Furthermore, the university also assures students that the necessary accommodation will be provided, “the university said.
“Alternative arrangements for in-class teaching have been made,” the university added.
Also read: When the Myanmar police died and nobody wanted to bury him …
Theodorescu’s contact information has since been removed from the faculty and department instructor pages. He did not immediately reply to a request for comment CBS News.
Civil unrest has engulfed Myanmar following a February 1 coup, which resulted in the military junta seizing control of the country.
Military officials claim to have taken control because leader Aung San Suu Kyi was elected after rigging elections. This claim has been widely debunked. Suu Kyi and hundreds of politicians and allies have been imprisoned since then.
The military has cut off internet services and blocked international communications to quell protests.
More than 100 people, including many young adults, students, educators and health workers, have been killed by the military for protesting against the coup.
On Friday (19/3/2021), the United Nations accused the junta of using force to take over more than 60 schools and even assaulting teachers, according to The Associated Press.
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