PETALING JAYA: The Harvard Club of Malaysia (HCM) has voiced strong support for Harvard University in opposing the Trump administration’s move to bar the institution from enrolling international students.
HCM declared its solidarity with Harvard’s stance, reaffirming its dedication to the core values that define both the university and its alumni network.
"We at the Harvard Club of Malaysia fully support our alma mater’s stand and affirm our commitment to openness, inquiry, and service —principles that not only define Harvard, but also our enduring role in society.
"To isolate institutions of learning from the world is to undermine the very foundation of human progress.
“We are confident that the university's ongoing commitment to its values, globalism, the rule of law, and the betterment of humanity will continue to stand it in good stead, whatever the political winds of the day,” it said in a statement released Friday (May 23).
HCM president Khoo Eu Wen said that alumni are ready to meet the challenge by championing intellectual and cultural exchange, while also ensuring that Malaysian students remain motivated to achieve their hopes and dreams.
Meanwhile, HCM deputy president Krishnavenee Krishan said the club is concerned about the plight of current Malaysian students at Harvard, and students who have just been admitted.
“These are bright young Malaysians with plenty to offer Malaysia, America, and the world.
“They should not be robbed of their opportunity to receive a world-class education, and to make world-class contributions” she said.
On Thursday (May 22), US President Donald Trump's administration revoked Harvard University's ability to enrol international students and is forcing existing students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal status, while also threatening to expand the crackdown to other schools.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the department to terminate Harvard University’s Student and Exchange Visitor Programme certification, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
Noem accused the university of "fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party."
Harvard said the Trump administration move, which affects thousands of students, was illegal and amounted to retaliation.
The clampdown on foreign students marks a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which has emerged as one of Trump's most prominent institutional targets.
The move comes after Harvard refused to provide information that Noem had previously demanded about some foreign student visa holders who attend the university, the department said.
“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments," Noem said in a statement.
Harvard rejected the allegations and pledged to support foreign students.
“The government’s action is unlawful.
"This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard’s academic and research mission,” the university said in a statement.
The university said it was "fully committed" to educating foreign students and was working on producing guidance for affected students.
Harvard enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in the 2024-2025 school year, amounting to 27% of its total enrollment, according to university statistics.
