Thousands Of Scientists Ask Elon Musk's Membership To Be Removed From Britain's Royal Society

Elon Musk (doc. ANTARA)

JAKARTA - More than 1,900 scientists signed an open letter urging US billionaire Elon Musk to be removed from membership of the Royal Society, the UK's prestigious science community. This request comes as a result of statements and actions deemed controversial.

The letter was written by Prof. Stephen Curry and addressed to the President of the Royal Society, Adrian Smith. In his letter, Curry expressed his disappointment with the organization which was deemed not to have taken a stand on Musk's honorary status since it was granted in 2018.

"Royal Society has been informed of member concerns for more than six months regarding Musk's behavior in contradiction to the Code of Ethics," Curry wrote, as quoted by ANTARA.

He highlighted Musk often spreading "baseless conspiracy theories" and "bad accusations" against Anthony Fauci, as stated by Prof. Dorothy Bishop in his statement of resignation from the Royal Society.

Curry also believes Musk's involvement in the Donald Trump administration is exacerbating the situation, especially as the government is considered to be trying to "weaken scientific research in the US."

According to him, the Royal Society's silence towards this controversy shows a lack of "moral courage." Therefore, he urged the organization to prove its commitment to defending the scientific community and the principles they uphold.

Based on The Guardian's report, the Royal Society is scheduled to hold a meeting on March 3 to discuss principles related to public statements and the behavior of its members.

In August 2024, several academics expressed concern over Musk's comments about the unrest in Britain and requested that his membership status be revoked. A few months later, prominent scientist from the University of Oxford, Dorothy Bishop, chose to withdraw from the Royal Society as a form of protest over Musk's membership.

Then, in January, Musk called on the British public to support the UK Reform party, calling the far-right party "the only hope." He also criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, by calling him "crime" and urging him to step down, accusing the government of covering up certain criminal cases.