[TYPES] ETAPS bars Russian researchers from attending

[Ralf Jung]

Dear all,

I fully agree with you, Neel.

The Russian regime started this war, not these researchers. This is the kind of 
sanction that will primarily hit the wrong people.

If financial sanctions make it harder for Russians to attend conferences, we 
should find ways to support our colleagues -- fostering international 
collaboration in our community seems more important now than ever.

Kind regards,
Ralf

On 08.03.22 10:01, Neel Krishnaswami wrote:
> [ The Types Forum, http://lists.seas.upenn.edu/mailman/listinfo/types-list ]
> 
> The ETAPS website 
> (https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.etaps.org__;!!IBzWLUs!HUevd2N5Ms-2WYC1sMdH93ef4xxRy4BjZ9KD0I8SPwLGGpv-Rk7u_Emgl9qMMyLGK4ex90o0Cm0$ 
> ) has the following text on its front page:
> 
>> The ETAPS association strongly condemns the war against Ukraine launched by 
>> President Putin. It is an intolerable breach of international law and a crime 
>> against humanity, unfolding in Europe now. Therefore, until further notice, 
>> ETAPS 2022 cannot accept registrations from affiliates of Russian research 
>> institutions or companies.
> 
> While I'm as opposed to illegal wars of aggression as anyone else, this feels 
> like a serious mistake.
> 
> There are many Russians (such as Jetbrains corporation) who have taken the 
> serious personal risk of publically opposing the war, and barring them from our 
> conferences due to their nationality feels wrong to me.
> 
> It may well be that the financial sanctions regime means that registration 
> payments cannot be accepted, but that is quite different from barring them 
> personally.
> 
> What do the rest of you think?
> 
> Best,
> Neel