Open Society, Academic Freedom and the Rule of Law: The Mission of Central European University (CEU) 1991-2021

• Autore: Carola Cerami
• Carica: Adjunct Professor in 'Public Diplomacy in the Digital Era', University of Pavia, and Director of the International Center for Contemporary Turkish Studies (ICCT), Milano
• Pagine: 123-139

ISSN: 2612-6672

3 • 2 • 2021

C. Cerami

Open Society, Academic Freedom and the

Rule of Law: The Mission of the Central

European University (CEU) 1991-2021

https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/NAD/index

Open Society, Academic Freedom and the Rule of Law:

The Mission of Central European University (CEU)

1991-2021

Carola Cerami 

Abstract

The defence of open society has been the main mission of the Central European University

(CEU) since its creation in 1991. This article explores the history of the CEU, from the

crucial years of the immediate post-Cold War until the present day. It is divided into two

parts: the first part analyses the origins of the CEU, its aims and the concept of the open

society as an academic mission; the second part focuses on the clash between the CEU and

the Hungarian government, led by right-wing populist minister Viktor Orbán. The “CEU

affair” has opened a debate about the nature of the relationship between academic freedom,

open society and the rule of law in Hungary and in Europe. Reconstructing the history of

the CEU offers the chance to explore the evolution of the open society ideal in Central and

Eastern Europe, from the euphoria of the post-Cold War to the challenges of the 21st

century.

Keywords: Open Society – Academic Freedom – Illiberal democracy – Central European

University – European Union.

CONTENTS: 1. Introduction 2. The End of the Cold War and the Open Society Ideal: The

Origins of the Central European University 3. The “CEU affair”, Hungary and the

European Union 4. Conclusion.

Adjunct Professor in “Public D iplomacy in the Digital Era”, University of Pavia , and Director of

the International Center for Contemporary Turkish Stud ies (ICCT), Milano. The essay was

submitted to double blind peer review. Member of the Editorial Team who oversaw the essay: Marco

Morra.