Letter: UH should be wary of Confucius Institute

Your alarming article on hacking by the Chinese government at the University of Hawaii and other American colleges and universities should have included an important and troubling detail: the subversive role being played here and across the country by so-called Confucius Institutes at institutions of higher learning (“Targeted attack,” Star-Advertiser, March 6).

One such institute is on the UH-Manoa campus. A recent commentary in The Washington Post cited FBI Director Christopher A. Wray’s testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, in which he declared that the FBI is “watching warily” and even investigating some of these Confucius Institutes. Wray also averred that “naivete” in the academic sector was exacerbating the problem and that the Chinese government has planted spies in American schools.

UH President David Lassner should explain how our university, dedicated as it is to free and open exchange of ideas, entered into a partnership with one of the most oppressive governments in the world, one that routinely executes its citizens for their beliefs.

How much did the Chinese government pay UH for the privilege of indoctrinating our students?

Gregory Shepherd

Professor, Kauai Community College

Lihue

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