(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - As part of the government's new strategy and under its new guidance to combating extremism, university lecturers and student union officials are obliged to inform the police in case they witness a Muslim student behaving as if he/she is depressed or isolated, or there is fear the student might become radicalized.
But, student union officials and university lecturers expressed shock at the new guidelines, which have resulted in deep discomfort among them and are seen as an infringement of students' civil liberties.
Officials implementing the government's revamped 'Prevent' strategy are training frontline university employees in how to spot students vulnerable to extremism.
Documents handed to staff claim that students who seem depressed or who are estranged from their families, who bear political grievances, or who use so-called extremist websites or have poor access to mainstream religious instruction could be at risk of radicalization.
The National Union of Students has told its officers that they do not have to provide police with details about students unless they are presented with a warrant.
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